FOOTBALL: SOLIHULL Moors have a fight on their hands to keep hold of two of their prized assets after rejecting offers for top scorer Akwasi Asante and midfielder Jamey Osborne, but manager Liam McDonald insists
The Observer understands that former Moors manager Marcus Bignot has made offers for both players, both aged 24, as he looks to strengthen his Grimsby Town squad to improve their position in League Two.
There have been other offers made from other Football League clubs for midfielder Osborne but all bids fall well below Moors’ valuation of both young players as they look to keep hold of their valuable duo.
And speaking to the Observer, McDonald has revealed that he is under no pressure to sell any of his star players during the current transfer window, while also revealing he is looking at the possibility of bringing in three fresh faces,
He said: “We’re a football club that is in a league that is fantastic for the club to be in and we’ve got good football players.
“If clubs are interested in individuals then that’s pleasing for the club because it shows the club are doing good stuff.
“We don’t need to get rid of any players but it’s one of those, if the right offer comes in then we’ll sit down and see where we go going forward.
“Nobody is going to leave the club without my say so, so we’ll see what materialises over the next few weeks. We’ve still got a few weeks to go and what will be will be.”
“We’re looking at bringing in a couple of three players. We’ll see what happens towards the back end of January.
“At the minute there’s interest in our players but nobody has a bid accepted because it hasn’t met our valuation. We just need to concentrate on getting back to winning games.”
Moors’ five-game unbeaten run came to an end on Saturday after they lost at home to promotion chasing Gateshead 2-0 at the Automated Technology Group Stadium.
McDonald revealed that it was a disappointing Moors dressing room after the final whistle, but insists there were positives to take from the match.
“As a group we’re disappointed because we’ve been on such a good run and for it to end the way it has.
“I just felt we weren’t at it. We didn’t’ create anything. I can’t think of there keeper making a save and I think we’ve just had a bad day.
“That’s going to happen throughout the season. You hit a performance and you want that performance level to be there and it wasn’t there on Saturday.
“The lads are disappointed because as much as Gate deserved it, were they much better than us?
“Even at half-time and we said it during the game, we hadn’t really got started and we were 1-0 against a team looking to get into the play-offs.
“On the flip side we’ve been poor and lost but for long periods of the game we were still in it and that’s the only positive we can take now.”
A week off from action could be just what Moors need according to McDonald whose side have no game this weekend which gives the new manager more time to prepare for a trip to Boreham Wood next Saturday.
“We looked tired,” McDonald added. “I’m not making excuses for the players but I just think we looked tired. We’ve not be effective enough in the final third and not as solid at the back.
“I think the lads do need a bit of a breather. They’ve worked hard and I’ve told the players that over Christmas they put a massive shift in and were excellent.
“We’ll move on from this and look forward to getting back on a good run.
“We’ve gone five games unbeaten so you’re going to enjoy it. It’s coming together I think if we are 100 per cent at it we’re a joy to watch, if we’re not that’s when we need to look at it and see what else we can do.
“We don’t get down about it, we’ve been on a good run. Now it’s time to start another one.”
