St Johnstone chairman Geoff Brown defiantly insisted he is not giving up manager Derek McInnes without a fight after English League One outfit Brentford made an official approach for the highly-rated young boss.
McInnes was keeping his own counsel on Sunday, 24 hours after his side had sealed an emphatic 2-0 victory at Aberdeen.
Brown was more forthcoming, though, saying he hoped the Brentford move was not yet a done deal and that he believed McInnes should hold out for a bigger club in the English Championship or even the Premier League.
However, if he does decide to call time on his managerial reign in Perth, then Brown will be demanding compensation from the Bees.
“I can confirm Brentford have approached us but they have not discussed or agreed compensation for Derek McInnes,” he said. “They told me they believed they had agreed terms with Derek but I have spoken to him and he assures me no one has agreed anything. They have spoken to his agent.
“I would try to shoo them away but we have always maintained that if a manager believes he is improving himself by moving on, we will not stand in his way. That makes it difficult for us as we aren’t in a position to match the financial rewards on offer down south.
“But, for obvious reasons, this opening at Brentford is not what I would call a high-profile job. It’s not the sort of post I believe Derek should be going for.”
Brown admitted the nature of the initial approach from Brentford who want McInnes to replace current player-boss Nicky Forster at Griffin Park had angered him.
“A group seemed to have been drawing up a list of candidates for their new chairman to interview and Del was among a number of possibilities,” he added. “I didn’t like the way they were doing things. So at that stage I said no to speaking to Del.
“But in football, you cannot stop people talking to agents. Brentford do seem to have a decent budget for new players and they obviously see him as the man to take them into the Championship.
“That might be a temptation. But I would be disappointed if Del took this job because I believe he deserves a bigger club.
“When we lost Owen Coyle to Burnley, they were a Championship side with aspirations of reaching the Premiership. That was an obvious attraction. He took them there and moved on to Bolton. It worked out well for him.
“The ultimate aim for a manager has to be managing in the English Premiership and there has to be a better chance of that by starting off in the Championship rather than League One.
“I can say we want to hold on to him but the reality is that it will be Del’s decision provided compensation is agreed.”
McInnes and his assistant Tony Docherty signed two-year contract extensions earlier in the season and the McDiarmid Park chairman is sure to demand a fair compensation fee.
“I don’t think that should be a matter for public consumption but we are not looking to price any manager out of the market,” he said. “You want a manager to do the best job possible and you do not get that if he feels aggrieved. That is the last thing we would want.
“Our fans do not want to lose him but I know that Del will not be here until the end of his days. However, he is busting a gut trying to bring together a St Johnstone squad for next season. I really hope that can continue.”