DUNDEE UNITED boss Peter Houston fears losing Rudi Skacel to a club with deeper pockets than the Tangerines.
The Czech star is only contracted to United until the end of this month and has already been linked with a move back to Slavia Prague in his homeland.
Tannadice boss Houston would love to hang on to Skacel and feels the club would be able to afford him until the end of the season at least, although he would need to talk the matter over with chairman Stephen Thompson.
However, the manager accepts that if another team is willing to splash the cash on a more lucrative deal then Skacel will probably be on his way in a few weeks.
“I have spoken to Rudi and what he wants is a longer-term deal,” said Houston.
“He is 33 years old and, given the age he is, he is looking to make a few quid from his next contract.
“If I am being honest, if somebody came in and offered to double or treble his wages then I would understand if he moved. But if he were looking for a deal here then I would speak to the chairman about it.
“If Rudi wanted to go to the end of the season (with United) then I don’t think that would be a problem. But if, as I believe is the case, he wanted it for longer then I would need to discuss that with the chairman to see what money is available,” said Houston.
“He goes out of his contract on the last day of January so he can sign for somebody on the first day of February. Rudi has his people working for him just now and you can understand why he would look at his options.”
Meanwhile, Houston, whose contract expires at the end of the season, has been linked with the vacant manager’s position at Blackpool.
However, the bookmakers remain unconvinced. The Tannadice gaffer’s name does not even appear in the top 50 list of possibles to replace Michael Appleton, who left to join Blackburn Rovers last week.