Dundee United star David Goodwillie will not be leaving Tannadice on the cheap, manager Peter Houston has insisted.
The 21-year-old striker has been linked with more clubs than any other Scottish player during the first week of the January transfer window the latest being German giants Kaiserslautern and now the United boss had his say on the matter.
For all the speculation, however, there has not been a single offer, and even tentative inquiries have been few and far between.
If things do move on over the next three weeks, there will have to be seven digits in the fee for the Scottish Cup holders to be tempted to part with their prized asset, who has 18 months left on his contract.
Houston said, “There have been no bids for anyone. We had a chief executive on four or five weeks ago asking about David’s availability.
“And last week a chairman from England was on the phone.
“But those have been the only questions and 100% there has been no bids.”
He said, “All last summer I was told that David, Craig Conway and Garry Kenneth would be leaving the club during the transfer window.
“But all three of them are still here.”
He added, “I don’t think there is any point in talking about it until someone bids.
“I’ll be the first to shake David’s hand and wish him all the best if he moves on to better things.
“We won’t stand in anyone’s way because I want them all to get the chance to better themselves.”‘Hottest talent’Houston said, “I would hate to see him leave for £500,000 or some of the figures we have seen.
“But I have spoken to the chairman about this and there is no way he will be leaving for £500,000.
“If someone starts talking about a million plus add-ons then I’d think we’d probably start talking.
“But that will be up to the chairman.”
He said, “What I will say, though, is that people need to get real.
“We have one of the hottest talents in the country and he has 18 months of his contract left.
“He is a Scotland international, is scoring goals and is progressing all the time.
“I’m not saying I’m expecting him to leave right now but if someone pays the right money then he’ll go.
“The same goes for Dusan Pernis, Craig Conway, Sean Dillon or any of them that’s football.”
He added, “I sold the club to Barry Douglas by telling him to come here, improve himself and win himself a move.
“If your only ambition is to be at Dundee United then you are no use to me.
“I want players who are desperate to prove themselves and move on to better things.”
Houston may be sceptical about the veracity of some of the reported interest in Goodwillie, but one thing he is certain about is the player’s quality.
He said, “He has been magnificent, he’s scored a lot of goals almost all of ours and became a Scotland international.
“He is a major young talent and if he polishes up his act off the field, which is something I have spoken to him about, then there is no limit to what he can achieve.”
If business is going to be done, Houston would prefer it to be sooner rather than later, adding, “I wouldn’t want anything to happen in the final week of the window.
“I’m not saying if David goes then I’d be bringing in another striker anyway I’d maybe want to strengthen elsewhere.”
He added, “If we can get through the month without anyone going in or out then I’ll be delighted.”
Goodwillie is suspended for Saturday’s fourth-round Scottish Cup tie against Ross County, while Danny Swanson has a tight hamstring and is a doubt. Otherwise the squad should be unchanged from last weekend.
When Houston looks back on last year’s victorious Scottish Cup campaign, this stage of the competition features near the top of his highlights.
He said, “Winning it is obviously the main one.
“But one of the best memories was winning at Partick in our first round.
“We had lost games over Christmas so the pressure was on, and from a financial point of view the club had to stay in the competition.”
He added, “Many people had them down as favourites for the game.
“We went there, worked hard and got a break to allow us to win the game.”