Caley Thistle manager John Hughes is pinning his hopes on Billy Mckay continuing to pass under the radar outwith Scotland this summer.
The attacker has scored 49 goals for the Highlanders in the last two seasons and Hughes is eager to secure his star forward on a new deal.
With Mckay’s contract due to expire next year, Hughes knows clubs will be monitoring the player’s progress. The attacker is on international duty in South America this week with Northern Ireland and Hughes is already eager for the transfer window to close at the end of August.
Hughes said: “I’m happy with what I’ve got and all that concerns me is that he is back here for the first day of pre-season.
” I am a little bit surprised no one has come in for him yet but I don’t see that as a bad thing. Billy is a natural predator and his little dummies and shimmies are great. It comes naturally, you cannot coach it.
“I see him working every day and he is a lad who likes to keep his head down.
“He was glad he wasn’t on the shortlist for the player of the year as he’s a quiet lad and wouldn’t have enjoyed having to give a speech had he won.
“Players like him know when to play on the shoulder or spin away and that’s why he scored 22 goals for us this season. He plays with a smile on his face and trains great every week and it would be very hard to replace that if a club came in for him in the summer.”
Having secured Gary Warren and Ryan Christie on new long-term contracts, Hughes is already looking forward to his players’ return to pre-season training next month.
After two successive top-six finishes, the Caley Thistle manager knows his side can no longer play the plucky underdog card in the Scottish Premiership.
He said: “We will try to repeat what we have done this season and these guys are spirited enough to do it. The challenge will be harder now as we are not underdogs anymore. We’re a top-six side.”