Enquiries regarding Niculae

[+Tree]

I understand that the club has received a significant number of enquiries over the past days regarding the availability of Marius for transfer.

Whilst I am not aware of any actual offers being made, I understand that there is a real chance that Marius may not be with us come the end of January (which suggests that his contract has clauses which will allow him to move in certain circumstances or for a set price).

I would hope that we can keep hold of him, however given his pedigree (and indeed the class shown yesterday) this may be a bit unlikely.

[Yngwie]

Very interesting. And to think, a couple of months ago some of us were wondering if there was any way we could offload him!

[clacher_holiday2]

Hmm...

Not sure how I'd feel about that, hes not shy about having digs which I like alot and he rarely wastes the ball.  He has become an important part of the team and he would definitley be missed on a footballing front.

However he is on alot of money, so I suppose if we recouped all of his wages, the cost of bringing in somebody else and bit left over to compensate then it would have to be a fair deal.

There is no replacement within our budget.

I did hear a surprising rumor about Nacho Novo on loan but I cant see that coming to anything, it wasnt even worth its own topic!

[FortressICT]

he is using us as a stepping stone to a bigger club.that is clear.

anyword of what clubs though?

[Kingsmills]

He was never likely to be seeing out his career with ICT. I'd be astonished if he didn't have a clause in his contract allowing him to move on for a trigger fee.

[Yngwie]

Yeah, it was a shop window deal. But how high is the trigger point?

I'd also wonder if the deal with Orion is that they get some or all of the sale proceeds, in return for having funded the wages to get him to here in the first place?

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Whoever he signs fer - I hope they dont play him away from home.

[ICTJackson]

maybe he'll fail at his new club and come back in a few years :023:

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Why does the word "mercenary" suddenly spring to mind ?

[Alex MacLeod]

Celtic and Rangers dont need strikers at the minute. None of the other teams in SPL could pay the wages he'd command so any enquiries are likey from south of the border or overseas.

What I wonder is where do those rumours stem from. Mentioned on Setanta that if Marius keeps imroving and scoring regular there coud be others showing interest. Has that remark been twisted to sound like the above.

[Yngwie]

Dundee Utd and Aberdeen need strikers and could afford him. There's also another SPL club that likes bringing in highly paid East Europeans on a whim.

But yes, more likely to be further afield.

[Alex MacLeod]

DU hired Brew to get shot of their high earners. Willie Millars pockets are even deeper than the grocers. Lithuanians and Romanians dont mix well

[+Tree]

To be fair whilst enquiries have been made Marius is still our player and he may chose to stick around for a while longer.

We all knew that if he performed then an early move was likely. I don't think that we can knock him for wanting to play at a bigger club. His ability also means that he could earn a lot more elsewhere than we can offer.

I suspect that if he moves it will not be to a scottish team (I don't see him interested in anyone other than the old firm and I would be surprised if he is on their radar at the moment).

[Kingsmills]

Then again, who thought that Mark Brown was on Celtic's radar this time last year ?

[+Tree]

Then again, who thought that Mark Brown was on Celtic's radar this time last year ?

It's questionable whether he is on Celtic's radar this year  :023:

[Guest ian]

When Marius signed he said his aim was to get us into top 6 - MARIUS we're not there yet but if we beat Rangers we might be :sillywave:

[Scotty]

We knew when he signed that ICT was viewed as a 'stepping stone' as he was honest enough to say so.

He said something along the lines that he hoped playing well for ICT would get him back into the Romanian national side as well as a possible move to one half of the OF ....

I kinda hope he sticks around for a while as he seems to be just getting going but if someone does come in for him then fair play ... no-one can say we didnt know.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

I am reliably informed that several French clubs have been watching him - but there again they love escargots.

[+Gringo]

If he does decide to leave would Brew give Deano a chance now that he is coming back (he is coming back isn't he?)

[FortressICT]

does anyone here reckon that he is good enough for a title challenging english championship side or a lower down prem team??

wigan or derby.he really is too good for the SPL!

[davieB]

As long as they play all their games at home :rolleyes02:

[CaleyD]

I'd be more worried if we went through the Transfer Window without anyone showing any interest.

Given the fact that he is on a rumoured ?250,000 per year, then I don't consider that to be a luxury we can afford long term with our current level of income and turnover.

Just to qualify that remark...if his goals and contributions see us to a top 6, or a decent cup run, then that could net us enough additional income to break even on the investment (should we let him just walk for free)...not to mention the "buzz factor" for the fans in such achievements.

Also, if we do achieve that and get thrust in to the limelight a bit more towards the end of the season and it is, in part, down to the contribution of Niculae...then quite simply...we would be receiving offers we simply could not refuse.

The "plan" in bringing in Niculae seems to be working, thus far, and as I said right at the start when news broke of his signing, it was/is a highly risky piece of business for which the club would be praised if it paid of and lambasted for if it failed - come 5pm on the 5th April we'll know which it is to be.

[Alex MacLeod]

Its Orion who pay him not ICT

[Scotty]

Its Orion who pay him not ICT

you sure about that Alex ? I thought they were paying a 'portion' of his wages .... although I have heard that portion quoted at different percentages ranging from 0% to 100% depending on who you speak to.

however, bottom line is that if we do get enquiries, and the player does go, no-one can say he deceived us as he said right from the start that ICT was his way into a bigger club in the UK

[clacher_holiday2]

If he does decide to leave would Brew give Deano a chance now that he is coming back (he is coming back isn't he?)

Deano is nowhere near the class of Marius  :029: