Dundee manager Barry Smith is looking at the loan market to bolster his squad for the new season, but has all but ruled out the possibility of former Dark Blues hero Leigh Griffiths returning to Dens Park.
With Wolves securing their Premier League status, the chances of the livewire frontman being part of Mick McCarthy’s first-team plans at the start of the next campaign are slim.
The obvious scenario would be the Molineux boss farming Griffiths out for six months, possibly a season, to give the Scotland internationalist game time.
St Johnstone are one of the clubs likely to express an interest in such a deal but Smith does not feel that the 21-year-old will be returning north.
And, even if he does, he does not envisage there being enough money in the pot for Dundee to be a contender for his services.
Smith said, “I think he would go to a club down south. I don’t think we could afford to bring him up here on loan anyway.”
He added, “He’s now a Premier League player and I would imagine he’s on a very good wage, which we can’t afford.”
Smith went on, “I definitely want to bring one more player in. I’d actually probably want more than that but I know I need one more at least.Small squad”We’re at 17 just now, but that includes a couple of younger ones. It’s a small squad. Ideally I would like a first-team squad of 18.”
He added, “We’ll be looking at every avenue whether it’s bringing in someone on loan or making a permanent signing.
“I’ve got people in mind but it’s just a case of waiting for things to happen.”
Smith said, “Clubs will hold on until they know what squad they’ve got before they decide who goes out on loan, so that would probably have to wait until the start of the season. Again, we’ve got options there.”
Meanwhile, it’s so far so good in the early stages of Dundee’s pre-season training.
Smith said, “I’ve been very pleased with pre-season so far. Players all look after themselves these days. I don’t think they can afford not to.
“They all want to be in the team at the start of the season and they have to give themselves the best chance to do that.”Fitness hailedHe added, “They were given a schedule of what to do over the close season as well, so they only actually had a couple of weeks to themselves.
“I haven’t had to do too much to get them back to a level of fitness. They were already there. No players likes the running though, and they’re really keen for games to start.”
This is Smith’s first pre-season as a manager, and he has drawn on his experiences as a player for what to do and what not to do.
He said, “I learned from pre-seasons under different managers and I’ve tended to use what worked for me. It’s tough but it’s not just about running up hills and battering them until they’re sick.
“You still have to work hard but there are different ways of doing that. They all know that they’ve worked that’s for sure.”