Kowalski Posted July 28, 2008 Report Posted July 28, 2008 Smith: I want to stay with the Dons Smith keen on new deal By Charlie Allan with the Dons in Holland Published: 28/07/2008 JAMIE Smith today confirmed he would be happy to extend his stay with Aberdeen. Midfielder Jamie is the star name among the next batch of Dons players whose contracts will be up for renewal at the end of the coming season. Aberdeen were rocked when Michael Hart, Chris Clark and Barry Nicholson chose not to accept new deals during the course of the last campaign, but Jamie gave the Red Army a massive boost by telling the Evening Express his heart is set on remaining at Pittodrie. He said: ‘‘I want to stay at Aberdeen, there is no doubt about that. ‘‘The priority, as ever, will be to look after my wife and family. ‘‘But we all love Aberdeen, the kids are settled at school and we have made a lot of friends. ‘‘Some players adapt easily to changing clubs every few years but I’m not one of those. ‘‘I was with Celtic for six years and Den Haag for one, I don’t enjoy all the upheaval that comes from moving about. ‘‘I’m enjoying my football at Aberdeen and I hope things work out the way we all want them to when we finally get down to discussing my contract situation later in the year.’’ The 27-year-old Scotland international was speaking after Aberdeen’s 2-1 friendly defeat by FC Zwolle in the second match of their pre-season tour of Holland. While not looking to offer excuses, Jamie admitted the Dons players found the going tough in the intense heat, which was more than 90 degrees. He said: ‘‘It was muggy heat, which make it hard to get breath, so we did well in the circumstances. ‘‘We worked hard for the bulk of the game, so we were disappointed to let it slip late on. ‘‘It put a damper on a good performance. ‘‘We need to learn to close games out but I would rather get a reminder about that out here in Holland than when the real stuff starts in Scotland. ‘‘I still enjoyed the workout, because it will help my fitness going into the new season. ‘‘I have had a lot of good times over the last couple of years, but also bad ones due to injuries. ‘‘All I want now is an injury-free run to finally get the chance to show the Aberdeen fans what I can really do.’’ The Dons now face Dutch cracks Vitesse Arnhem at Driel on Wednesday and Jamie accepts they will need to raise their game again to avoid a defeat. ‘‘They were always in the top six when I played in Holland, so it’s going to be very difficult,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s going to be the toughest match of our tour, but I’m sure we will respond to the challenge of that and do well.’’ Quote
K-9 Posted July 28, 2008 Report Posted July 28, 2008 Might get round to opening talks in mid to late December!! Quote
TENEMENTFUNSTER Posted July 28, 2008 Report Posted July 28, 2008 Might get round to opening talks in mid to late December!! He'd probably sign just now! Quote
manc_don Posted July 28, 2008 Report Posted July 28, 2008 Aye - before he gets injured!! Who wouldn't want free medical treatment Quote
KGB Posted July 28, 2008 Report Posted July 28, 2008 He wasnt hard to do business with last time so get him signed up Aberdeen Quote
Sandaldinho Posted July 28, 2008 Report Posted July 28, 2008 NOTE TO ABERDEEN MANAGEMENT TEAM sign him up before anyone else starts sniffing around! or you could do what you normally do and SIT ON YOUR ARSE AND LOOSE HIM FOR FK ALL Quote
TENEMENTFUNSTER Posted July 28, 2008 Report Posted July 28, 2008 NOTE TO ABERDEEN MANAGEMENT TEAM sign him up before anyone else starts sniffing around! or you could do what you normally do and SIT ON YOUR ARSE AND LOOSE HIM FOR FK ALL Correctamundo. Quote
BigAl Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Correctamundo. Kind of funny how we can all see it Quote
Sharpie Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Should we nae wait to see if he can stay fit for a couple of games in a row afore chucking money at him? I agree his talent isn't in doubt. Quote
Jute Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Is that not roughtly the article we have seen from Hart, Anderson, Nicholson and McNaughton in last few years and all have left? Quote
BigAl Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Is that not roughtly the article we have seen from Hart, Anderson, Nicholson and McNaughton in last few years and all have left? Nae sure about SuperKev in that list, seem to mind he made it pretty clear early doors he was offski Quote
BigAl Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Tango speaketh: Calderwood is quick off the mark Dons manager determined not to lose best players as he moves to get contract deals done By Michael Gannonin Holland Published: 29/07/2008 Aberdeen manager Jimmy Calderwood will waste no time in offering new contracts to Jamie Smith and Scott Severin as he is determined to avoid another exodus of his best players. Calderwood watched Chris Clark and Michael Hart leave in January and then Barry Nicholson follow them out the Pittodrie exit door last season. The Dons manager does not want a repeat. Smith and Severin are both out of contract at the end of the season, but will be offered new deals in the coming weeks. Defender Andrew Considine is set to sign his new contract offer when the club returns from its tour of Holland. Calderwood said: “We have lost a lot of our good players in the past few years and we are well aware we want to get these things done early. “We have not spoken to Jamie or Seve yet, but they are the two big ones we want to get tied up. Hopefully Andrew Considine’s new deal will be finalised when we get back. “It is important to keep your best players, but it is not always easy to stop them if they want to go. “If you look at the players who have left Pittodrie in the last few years they could make up an entire SPL team, which would probably qualify for Europe. “The likes of Barry Nicholson, Chris Clark and Michael Hart would get into any team. No disrespect to anybody, but if we had some of those players last season we might have finished third or even split the Old Firm. “That is the utopia, but you have to keep building while hopefully keeping the best ones. “It is difficult when you are building a team and a club comes in with some money and it is back to square one. “It is not just us who cannot compete with the English clubs, Rangers and Celtic have struggled as well. “There are always wolves at the door and I do not want to lose two of our best players for nothing. “Jamie had a horrendous time with injuries last season, he barely played 20 of our 50 games. “He is potentially our best player, he can win games for us as he showed in Europe, but we need to get him playing consistently. That will come if he stays fit this season and, hopefully, he will be an important players for us.†Calderwood’s side is set for its toughest test of the tour tomorrow night when Aber-deen face Vitesse Arnhem in Driel. The Dons were on course for victory against Second Division side FC Zwolle on Sunday only to concede two late goals. Quote
rednek Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 The likes of Barry Nicholson, Chris Clark and Michael Hart would get into any team. No disrespect to anybody, but if we had some of those players last season we might have finished third or even split the Old Firm. Hearing that just confirm the lack of ambition at AFC. ]“We have not spoken to Jamie or Seve yet, but they are the two big ones we want to get tied up. Hopefully Andrew Considine’s new deal will be finalised when we get back. Whos more important to the team- our captain and possibly one of the most infuential players in SPL, our most creative player or a carthorse who cant focus for 90mins a week? Get a grip JC. Quote
??? Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Hearing that just confirm the lack of ambition at AFC. All 3 wanted to leave. Quote
rednek Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 All 3 wanted to leave If they were offered better deals they would have stayed. Unless the club ambition didnt match theirs. IMO. Quote
??? Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 If they were offered better deals they would have stayed. Unless the club ambition didnt match theirs. IMO. They couldn't afford to. Quote
K-9 Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 They couldn't afford to. They managed when they panicked and did it for Miller and Diamond!! Quote
Tyrant Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 They couldn't afford to. How about offering them the money that was being wasted on Touzani - a player that, as much as he was liked by alot of fans was obviously never going to feature prominantly. Quote
BigAl Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 How about offering them the money that was being wasted on Touzani - a player that, as much as he was liked by alot of fans was obviously never going to feature prominantly. And the money set aside for our new right back aka Alan Maybury. Quote
??? Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 They managed when they panicked and did it for Miller and Diamond!! So you know what they get paid do you? Did Richie Byrne tell you on KKK-Chat? Miller is a forward and would've been harder to replace. Diamond is younger and has more potential than Clark/Hart/Anderson. How about offering them the money that was being wasted on Touzani - a player that, as much as he was liked by alot of fans was obviously never going to feature prominantly. They couldn't offer money that was being paid out to another player? And the money set aside for our new right back aka Alan Maybury. Aberdeen have money set aside? Quote
BobbyBiscuit Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 All 3 wanted to leave. Hart didn't want to leave, they just never offered him enough cash. Quote
BigAl Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Aberdeen have money set aside? Woooooosh Adam Quote
TENEMENTFUNSTER Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 If they were offered better deals they would have stayed. Unless the club ambition didnt match theirs. IMO. We cannot match those deals. Clark was offski irrespective of the deal offered. Nicholson left not entirely because of cash though, believe it or believe it not, he genuinely wanted a new challenge. The club's ambition can only be stretched as far as the budget allows, get used to it FFS. Quote
TENEMENTFUNSTER Posted July 29, 2008 Report Posted July 29, 2008 Hart didn't want to leave, they just never offered him enough cash. He did leave for money. Though who knows how much would have kept him, we probably will never know. Quote
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