Dundee United boss Tam Courts knows his side’s superb early season form could attract big name suitors for his star men in January.
Courts freely admits United are a ‘selling club’ that will one day lose star men such as Jeando Fuchs and Benjamin Siegrist.
Both players are out-of-contract in the summer.
But Courts wants to build a culture of success at United that entices big name players to prolong their stay.
“With your top players, on one hand you have to accept they could go,” said Courts.
“On the other hand, you try to create something special that makes them want to stay.
“My job here is to understand that we have to develop players to be able to sell them.
“But we also have to create an environment that gives them a want and willingness to stay longer.
“This is a big club with a big fan base. There’s nothing better than the fans seeing their best players committing to the club.
“There also has to be a sense of realism.
“We are still early in the season to be considering players potentially going.
“But if we can keep delivering on the pitch and keep giving the players something they feel attached to then it can help us.
“They can enjoy their time here so much that they want to stay.
Courts aiming to unlock United’s potential
“All these players came to Dundee United in the first place because it is a big club in it’s own right.
“They can see the potential. If we can help the club realise its’ potential then these players would decide to prolong their stay.
“They could then play together for a lot longer.
“That’s what the fans would want, it’s what we would want but we are also realistic and know that players have their own minds.”
Tam Courts: Dundee United are a selling club like every team in the league
Courts wants to keep his top players at the club for as long as possible.
But he insists if United AREN’T rearing talented players to sell on then they aren’t doing their job properly.
“Every single club in this league would consider themselves as a ‘selling club’ to one level or another,” added Courts.
“We are no different.
“In fact, we are probably one of the few clubs who acknowledge at regular intervals that we want to be a selling club.
“If we aren’t selling players – particularly young players – then we probably aren’t doing something right.
“I have to give young players opportunities and accept there is going to be interest in our better players.
“That’s always a backhanded compliment to our players and their performance levels.”
