The once-mighty Dynamo Kiev are reportedly showing an interest in signing Hearts winger Andy Driver.
Driver has been linked with quite a few moves away from Tynecastle since the end of year transfer rumour mill started in earnest, with a number of English clubs (including Everton) said to have been watching him on several occasions this season. Hearts also rejected two offers in the summer from Burnley that were believed to be between £500K and £1million.
Ukrainian cracks Kiev are the latest club to be linked with the 21 year-old, but without wanting to tempt fate I’ve always thought that out of all the potentially sellable assets that Hearts have at their
disposal, Driver would be the least likely to leave at this stage. A combination of things lead me to take this view, with the main one being that the player himself seems to have no inclination whatsoever to leave the club at any time soon. He seems to have his head screwed on to a greater extent than most footballers do at his age, and would appear to appreciate the importance of establishing himself at a club that can help him to develop into the player he has the potential to be, before taking a step into a slightly more trying arena.
This was reflected in Driver’s decision to sign a five-year contract with Hearts last season, and this is obviously something that will ensure that the club receive a decent fee if the player does end up being tempted by a particularly attractive offer from elsewhere. Dynamo Kiev could well be a club in a position to offer the young man an awful lot of money for a fairly short-term contract (similarly to Garry O’Connor when he went to Moscow from Hibs), so there has to be the possibility that Driver would consider such a move, but in the immediate term I’m not convinced that he’ll be leaving us.
He says…..!
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I take the same view as you, Mr H. However, its slightly worrying that East European clubs are allegedly interested in our players – it suggests that the hand of Vladimir is at work somehwere, talking to his network of agents and trying to engineer some competition to sign our player. What if he and Dynamo agree a fee, but Driver turns the move down – will Driver then become the new Webster in Vladimir’s eyes ? Despite the relative calm between the regime and Csaba, the fact remains that their objective is to sell players for money, and opportunism is everything.
I agree Specs, but isn’t that what all Chief Execs are trying to do? All owners are looking to balance the books/make money.
That isn’t just a Romanov trait, if anything Romanov’s contacts stirring up competition and a bidding war, puts us in a better position than we ever have been as regards to commanding transfer fees.
or maybe I’m being overly optimistic.
You’re right, DT. Perhaps I should worded my thoughts differently. Romanov’s abilities to generate interest in our players from outside the UK is a bit of a double-edged sword – it can serve to increase the fees we receive, but it may also backfire if the player in question simply does not want to go to that country – in which case the player’s form and attitude at Hearts may dip once he realises that the owner wants him out the club.
True, but then it’s not necessarily that Romanov wants him “out” but rather like any good CE is looking to sell at the right price. The real question is like you say, if he turned down the move would Romanov then see him as a new Webster or whatever. I would like to think not however, and if the lad is professional he would still give his all for the club.