Joel Nouble: Livingston manager bemoans 'time wasters' amid interest in striker
- Published
Joel Nouble (left) was the toast of Livingston again in the Viaplay Cup
Livingston manager David Martindale is "surprised there's been a lot of time wasters" as he admitted there had only been "a couple of cheeky offers" for striker Joel Nouble.
The 27-year-old scored his second goal of the season as Ayr United were knocked out the Viaplay Cup 2-0.
Martindale said in June he would be looking for a £1m transfer fee.
"I'm not wanting to start throwing numbers about," he said when asked what he would be looking for now.
"Just a realistic offer for a player who is one of the best offensive players in the Scottish Premiership."
Livingston picked up Nouble for free after the Englishman left Aldershot Town in 2021.
However, while they triggered a year's extension to his contract this summer, his manager has been expecting to lose the striker before the end of the current transfer window.
"I don't want to stand in anyone's way, but it needs to be beneficial to the club," Martindale told BBC Scotland.
"I've had a couple of cheeky offers that are not worth my time if I'm perfectly honest. From England and a club in the Premiership up here.
"I'm not entertaining it. A couple in England, a couple of tentative enquiries from Turkey and Greece. I'm surprised there's been a lot of time wasters."
Nouble admits that "some days it's tough" to ignore the speculation about his future but insists "I'll be happy" to stay with Livingston if no acceptable offer arrives.
"If you told many professionals you'll get to play Premiership football, I'm not sure a lot of people would be disappointed," he said. "I'm always grateful to get this opportunity to play at this level.
"As a player, you're always ambitious, I always want to challenge myself, but all I can control is to perform well here. All I know is no teams have met what Livingston want."
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