canarydan23 4,060 Posted April 23, 2018 I''ve heard from an occasionally accurate source that Naismith refused to countenance a relegation wage reduction, as such, he remains on what we were paying him when we were in the Premier League.It could simply be the club''s failed to agree terms but given how out of favour he was and how much of a millstone his wages were, logically I find it hard to agree that NCFC were playing hardball with a fee. There would have been many happy to let him go for free just to get his salary off the books.I suspect it was more likely Sunderland refused to match, rather than were unable to match, his abysmally high terms he currently enjoys at Norwich.I also don''t doubt his desire to play football but I do question using the term "just wants to play football". That is patently not the case, as if this was his sole motivation, he''d have left Norwich already. He was to play football and collect what he is due under his current Norwich contract, which is the oft-quoted £40k per week figure is accurate, will be in excess of £2 million.I''m sure there is some middle ground between Naismith and the club that can be arrived upon. We''ll have to give him a golden goodbye somewhere close to a 7-figure sum, but not the £2 million plus he could earn playing for the youth team, and he''ll walk away to a new club in a position to accept a significantly lower contract, something more relative to his worth as a football player.But let''s not allow Naismith to paint himself as the heroic, selfless, football-loving chap who "just wants to play". Yes, he just wants to play, but he also wants to get a wheelbarrow full of cash as well. And his little roleplay as the saintly figure at the mercy of big bad Norwich (who have probably paid him tens of thousands of pounds for every minute he has been on the pitch) who just won''t let him play is tiresome. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy G 10 Posted April 23, 2018 So is nobody hoping he''s going to come back and spearhead a promotion push for us next year? What with Hoolahan leaving and Maddison likely too as well, I guess he''s a player we either need to sell (hopefully without losing too much in paying his wages) or play Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 7,455 Posted April 23, 2018 @AndyIt''d be lovely but it ain''t going to happen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Essjayess 307 Posted April 23, 2018 [quote user="Andy G"]So is nobody hoping he''s going to come back and spearhead a promotion push for us next year? What with Hoolahan leaving and Maddison likely too as well, I guess he''s a player we either need to sell (hopefully without losing too much in paying his wages) or play[/quote]To be honest i dont think Farke rates him as the type of guy to spearhead a DF team next season, Daniel saw enough of him to let him make his eventual move to Hearts. Only a guess but, i suspect it will be "as you were" with Naismith, in that City will bite the bullet and accept they will have to pay the majority of his wages till end contract, as they did with Lafferty, and agree to let him play for Hearts again for all of next season. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PurpleCanary 5,531 Posted April 23, 2018 [quote user="canarydan23"]I''ve heard from an occasionally accurate source that Naismith refused to countenance a relegation wage reduction, as such, he remains on what we were paying him when we were in the Premier League.It could simply be the club''s failed to agree terms but given how out of favour he was and how much of a millstone his wages were, logically I find it hard to agree that NCFC were playing hardball with a fee. There would have been many happy to let him go for free just to get his salary off the books.I suspect it was more likely Sunderland refused to match, rather than were unable to match, his abysmally high terms he currently enjoys at Norwich.I also don''t doubt his desire to play football but I do question using the term "just wants to play football". That is patently not the case, as if this was his sole motivation, he''d have left Norwich already. He was to play football and collect what he is due under his current Norwich contract, which is the oft-quoted £40k per week figure is accurate, will be in excess of £2 million.I''m sure there is some middle ground between Naismith and the club that can be arrived upon. We''ll have to give him a golden goodbye somewhere close to a 7-figure sum, but not the £2 million plus he could earn playing for the youth team, and he''ll walk away to a new club in a position to accept a significantly lower contract, something more relative to his worth as a football player.But let''s not allow Naismith to paint himself as the heroic, selfless, football-loving chap who "just wants to play". Yes, he just wants to play, but he also wants to get a wheelbarrow full of cash as well. And his little roleplay as the saintly figure at the mercy of big bad Norwich (who have probably paid him tens of thousands of pounds for every minute he has been on the pitch) who just won''t let him play is tiresome.[/quote]I''ve seen that rumour before. But after relegation the club said, in an official statement to shareholders, ie one in which you have to tell the truth, that ALL players, and that would include Naismith, had relegation clauses in their contracts. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 7,455 Posted April 23, 2018 "It could simply be the club''s failed to agree terms but given how out of favour he was and how much of a millstone his wages were, logically I find it hard to agree that NCFC were playing hardball with a fee. There would have been many happy to let him go for free just to get his salary off the books. I suspect it was more likely Sunderland refused to match, rather than were unable to match, his abysmally high terms he currently enjoys at Norwich"This is how I see it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BroadstairsR 2,093 Posted April 23, 2018 I suppose today is the day to remind ourselves of the real nature of football dealings.The upsides and the downsides of it all.For every Naismith there is a Wes.For every RVW there is a Grant Holt.For every physio there is a Matt Jarvis. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nutty nigel 7,352 Posted April 23, 2018 Amazing to think back to the drawn out saga of the Naismith transfer when one of the biggest whines was that little old Norwich should review their wage structure because it was holding us back. I get the transfer didn''t work out. I agree he''s now a millstone, but as usual I don''t get where the bad feeling and need to make stuff up comes from. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AJ 1,218 Posted April 23, 2018 Still don''t know why we bothered perusing him after we tried to get him in the summer. Should have just moved on and signed someone who actually wanted to be here and perform. Our January dealings basically hinged on Naismith helping us defy relegation but all he did was help encourage it.To spear head our attack he''d have to be doing something impressive north of the border... but he isn''t.With the greatest will in the world I''d love him to do well, but equally I''d happily never see him in a Norwich shirt again. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grumpy 107 Posted April 23, 2018 It can''t be as simple as this but if Hearts offered to pay the rest of his contract up,he could then negotiate a contract with them. Surely that is a win win situation for all parties.We would lose out on a fee for him but if we hold out for the rest of his contract he leaves on a free anyway. What have I missed in all this. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nutty nigel 7,352 Posted April 23, 2018 [quote user="Grumpy"]It can''t be as simple as this but if Hearts offered to pay the rest of his contract up,he could then negotiate a contract with them. Surely that is a win win situation for all parties.We would lose out on a fee for him but if we hold out for the rest of his contract he leaves on a free anyway. What have I missed in all this.[/quote]I don''t think you''ve missed anything. If Hearts took on his contract he could go tomorrow. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hairy Canary 628 Posted April 23, 2018 Don''t want to be too negative here but surely in Hearts position they wouldn''t need to go that far? If they offered, say, to pay up half his wages that might still be attractive enough for us to accept as we would be saving half his wages. If we refused then he would be back here, not playing, and us paying all his wages. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grumpy 107 Posted April 23, 2018 Would you think he could command a transfer fee of about 2m. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
canarydan23 4,060 Posted April 23, 2018 "relegation clauses"A suitably vague term. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 7,455 Posted April 23, 2018 No, I don''t.It isn''t any secret how keen we are to get him off the books. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hairy Canary 628 Posted April 23, 2018 Hard to judge Grumpy. I would think it was possible but not from Hearts as I doubt they have that sort of money. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alan 0 Posted April 23, 2018 If you look at the wages in the SPL they are very low particularly if you discount Celtic and rangers. 1/4 his wages is more than most earn at Celtic and almost certainly more than anyone at any other club. That is one reason Scottish football is so poor. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grumpy 107 Posted April 23, 2018 [quote user="Alan"]If you look at the wages in the SPL they are very low particularly if you discount Celtic and rangers. 1/4 his wages is more than most earn at Celtic and almost certainly more than anyone at any other club. That is one reason Scottish football is so poor.[/quote]If that is true it begs the question why a player of Browns (Celtic) quality has been plying his trade in Scotland when there are riches to be had in the Prem Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
STFU 0 Posted April 23, 2018 Possibly because he knows that if he tried the stuff he gets away in The SPL down here he’d be getting sent off every week! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
STAN 29 Posted April 23, 2018 Anyone would think he’s been hard done by? I’m 99.9% certain if Naismith offered to tear up his contract with no further financial detriment to our club we would bite his arm off. With that in mind it’s about time Naismith stopped bleating on about his future. One of, if not the worst signing we’ve ever made. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gissing canary 2 Posted April 23, 2018 Completely agree Stan. For fee / contract size and length, plus being behind; wes, Pritchard, Madison fairly quickly - he is our worst ever signing. RVW was poor but never got the service he had in Portugal. We hit it at his head! So Naismith wins - in 25 years watching I can’t think of one worse. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Six Pack 89 Posted April 24, 2018 Pritchard gone...Hoolahan gone ...Maddison going .....Step up to the plate young man (Naismith) !And a massive thanks to Webber - who wouldn''t know the front end of a mule to the back Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 7,455 Posted April 24, 2018 @GissingYep, agreed he''s turned out worse than Ricky- we did at least manager to shift him out on loan without much issue.I reckon that January window may well go down as one of the worst in our history. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike 0 Posted April 24, 2018 It''s not Naismith''s fault he signed a stupid deal for the club, it''s the fault of the idiots that came up with and ultimately sanctioned the deal.If you worked in a business where at the age of 34/35 your earning potential dropped off a cliff and you were approaching that age, you would hold on to see that deal through. From all accounts Naismith is professional and not a disruptive influence. The best NCFC can expect is to allow him to do a deal in Scotland and we then cover the difference between that new contract & the one he had with us... the other option is for him to be on our books for the whole of next season on full pay.Not one person on this board would give up their last hope of a big pay day.He has been a disaster at NCFC and best he leaves but he has to think of his family and his finances. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JF 694 Posted April 24, 2018 Six Pack wrote the following post at 24/04/2018 10:18 AM:Pritchard gone...Hoolahan gone ...Maddison going .....Step up to the plate young man (Naismith) !And a massive thanks to Webber - who wouldn''t know the front end of a mule to the backWhat a strange post! I’m far from sold on Webber but I fail to see what he’s being blamed for here!? Maybe not finding the fountain of youth! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
STFU 0 Posted April 24, 2018 [quote user="Mike "]It''s not Naismith''s fault he signed a stupid deal for the club, it''s the fault of the idiots that came up with and ultimately sanctioned the deal.If you worked in a business where at the age of 34/35 your earning potential dropped off a cliff and you were approaching that age, you would hold on to see that deal through. From all accounts Naismith is professional and not a disruptive influence. The best NCFC can expect is to allow him to do a deal in Scotland and we then cover the difference between that new contract & the one he had with us... the other option is for him to be on our books for the whole of next season on full pay.Not one person on this board would give up their last hope of a big pay day.He has been a disaster at NCFC and best he leaves but he has to think of his family and his finances.[/quote]To add to this, it’s not inconceivable that he took a pay cut when he joined us from Everton, given that he joined them on a free from Rangers when they went bankrupt. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Icecream Snow 761 Posted April 24, 2018 [quote user="Mike "]The best NCFC can expect is to allow him to do a deal in Scotland and we then cover the difference between that new contract & the one he had with us... the other option is for him to be on our books for the whole of next season on full pay. [/quote]I wouldn''t say that''s the best the club can hope for, but ultimately it''ll be a game of brinkmanship.If he sits in the reserves for a season, he''ll be nearly 33 by the time he leaves. Within Craig Levein commenting now on his lack of match fitness and his need for a pre-season, I can''t see Scottish clubs queuing up at the end of 2019. And if Hearts are offering a 2-3 year deal now, they won''t be in 12 months time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bonzo 198 Posted April 28, 2018 NCFC are in a weak position with this player. The best option is that we get something back to offset some of his remaining wage contract. In Scotland this won’t be much. If we recall him and try the hardball route of having him play with the U23s we pay his full wages and it makes the club look vindictive which won’t be good for morale. It may be that Naismith wants to be in Scotland if so this does at least give us some leverage in any settlement negotiation. Naismith is a decent pro but it hasn’t worked out -the issue is that our club negotiated a poor deal when we signed him. As others note a player’s career is short - good luck to the guy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Capt. Pants 4,092 Posted April 28, 2018 Heard today there are some unbelievable rinky dinks in Naismith''s contract regarding expenses etc, or moreover his family''s. We need to get shot of him asap. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike 0 Posted April 29, 2018 [quote user="Bonzo"]NCFC are in a weak position with this player. The best option is that we get something back to offset some of his remaining wage contract. In Scotland this won’t be much. If we recall him and try the hardball route of having him play with the U23s we pay his full wages and it makes the club look vindictive which won’t be good for morale. It may be that Naismith wants to be in Scotland if so this does at least give us some leverage in any settlement negotiation. Naismith is a decent pro but it hasn’t worked out -the issue is that our club negotiated a poor deal when we signed him. As others note a player’s career is short - good luck to the guy.[/quote] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites