AMID all the talk of transfer wheelings and dealings, fans will be reassured to hear that one our most quietly effective players is on track to fight for his place in the first XI next season.

Niko Kranjcar was rated by supporters and pundits alike as one of the buys of the season and cost a meagre £2.5 million when he followed Harry Redknapp from Portsmouth.

When you consider that's about as much as a group of the younger players might spend on a night out in Faces nightclub in Ilford, his fee seems like an absolute bargain.

The Croatian winger is apparently fit and raring to go having gotten back into full training with all of the squad who weren't involved in the World Cup in South Africa.

The player hasn't featured since picking up an ankle injury against his old club in the FA Cup semi-final defeat, and missed the tense Premier League run-in.

At 25, he's just entering his prime years and if Redknapp does make any additions to our midfield this summer they'll face stiff competition for their place in the starting line-up.

He may not have the raw speed and funky eyebrows of Aaron Lennon, or the sheer jackhammer-like shooting power of Tom Huddlestone, but if you're after incisive passing, quick thinking and top drawer technique, then Niko's your man.