New St Johnstone owner Adam Webb has topped up Craig Levein’s summer transfer budget.
But he doesn’t anticipate his manager being forced to find a replacement for star striker Adama Sidibeh anytime soon.
Saints have knocked back a low six-figure Swansea City bid for The Gambia international, who is contracted to the Perth club for a further two seasons.
It remains to be seen if the English Championship side – or anybody else for that matter – come back with a higher offer.
However, Webb doesn’t foresee Sidibeh playing his football anywhere other than McDiarmid Park this season.
“Adama is a dynamic, fantastic player who is someone our supporters want to get behind and follow,” said the American lawyer.
“What I love about him is he gives 100% at all times on the pitch – he has collapsed on the pitch because he’s given so much.
“He’s a fighter so if you want that you’re going to have to pay for that.
“There’s been no change on that.
“We won’t be allowing players to go if we can help it.
“It’s a balancing act. What’s the worth to this club – more wins, more goals?
“In the case of Adama, it’s worth a lot. Not only does he have skill. He has got heart of a lion.
“He’s a special player and we would need a very substantial compensation to justify letting him go.
“I believe we will keep Adama. I believe he will have a tremendous season.
“And I believe there will be other opportunities for those who see him as a star like we do.”
Budget boost
Levein has already brought in six new players but the squad rebuild is far from completion and, now that Webb has taken over from Geoff Brown, his budget has grown.
“We’ve given it a boost,” said Webb.
“That will help getting another couple of high quality players.
“We’ve just bought in a potential rock star player in Aaron Essel.
“A lot of it is about thinking outside the box and the usual recruitment fields.
“We want to find diamonds in the rough.
“We all know stories of players who are over-paid and have under-performed.
“Yes, more money is important but it’s not everything and the creativity Craig, Andy (Kirk) and Gus (MacPherson) have shown is also important.
“By giving them more to work with I’m confident it will enhance performance.
“There will be give and take, like at every other club, and we’ll stick to the budget.
“But there will always be ongoing discussions and if something comes up that is an extraordinary opportunity for the club we’d look at it.”
Give your all
Webb, who held a meeting with Levein on Wednesday, added: “We are very committed to Craig and his coaching team.
“They had the task of keeping us in the Premiership and they achieved that goal.
“I thought the January signings were fantastic and he’s had another window to bring in players.
“I saw Uche Ikpeazu play in the EFL and was very impressed by him – he’s a beast!
“So it’s unfortunate what has happened to him.
“We will obviously have great challenges this season, as always.
“We need to be a team playing at 100%, playing on the front foot and have an exciting style for the fans.
“To an extent we didn’t have the personnel to make that happen last season but I think we will going forward.
“The one thing we all know and want to see, is players giving their all.”
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