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FOOTBALL EUROPE: Naismith on verge of greatness

/noticias.info/ by Alex O'Henley
from Glasgow

If the speculation is to be believed it is only a matter of time before Kilmarnock FC striker Steven Naismith moves to a bigger club in Scotland or England. Dubbed Scotland’s answer to Wayne Rooney, the 20 year-old was invited to train under the watchful gaze of Arsenal FC manager Arsène Wenger earlier this season, while closer to home another Frenchman, Rangers FC supremo Paul Le Guen has also been casting covetous eyes in his direction.

Second chance
There is a certain irony in the interest from Rangers, as Naismith was released by the Ibrox club as a schoolboy. However, he was soon picked up by the Kilmarnock youth system, where manager Jim Jefferies "spotted something special" and fast-tracked him through to the first team, handing him his senior debut during the 2003/04 season.

Young player award
He made 18 more appearances the following year scoring his first goal for Killie, but Naismith’s career really took off last season scoring 13 goals, a performance that earned him the Scottish PFA Young Player of the Year Award. He has also marked his international debut with a goal for Scotland’s Under-21 side in their 4-0 defeat of Iceland in March 2006, a feat he repeated later that month for the national B team in a 3-2 loss to Turkey.

Significant interest
So far this season the diminutive striker, who can also play on the left side of midfield, has added a further five goals to his tally although Jefferies concedes his form has dipped as a result of the attention from bigger clubs. With two years still left on his contract Jefferies hopes Naismith stays at Kilmarnock a while longer but also knows he risks losing his star player sooner rather than later.

Decision time
"One of these days Steven will leave and he will go to the very top, I am sure of that," said Jefferies. "Steven has admitted the coverage he got when he went down to Arsenal affected his form. I want to keep him at Kilmarnock and achieve something here. We are in the semi-final of the League Cup and who knows, maybe we could bring a trophy back to Rugby Park. However, I know that one day we will have to make a decision on Steven."

Transfer target
If and when Naismith goes, Jefferies would prefer to sell the striker to an English club having seen another of his protégés, Kris Boyd come back to haunt Kilmarnock in every game since his €500,000 move to Rangers last January. Unlike Boyd, Naismith is still under contract and it would take an offer in the region of €1.5m to entice him away from Kilmarnock with last season’s UEFA Champions League finalists Arsenal first in the queue if he is allowed to go.

English hope
"I cannot pick and choose which club Steven goes to but if he goes to an English club I wouldn’t have to worry about him coming back to haunt us," added Jefferies. "Kilmarnock aren’t in a position to turn down a big transfer fee for a player, but it will take a really good offer to prise Steven Naismith away from us." notas_de_prensa_archivo