How Benjamin Kimpioka could still leave St Johnstone as Simo Valakari gives update

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Benjamin Kimpioka looked certain to leave St Johnstone during the summer transfer window.

But the Swedish striker remains at McDiarmid Park and finds himself out of manager Simo Valakari’s plans, left out matchday squads for the last three games, including the most recent defeat to Kilmarnock.

Kimpioka had THREE chances to leave Saints during the winter window, as revealed by Not the Old Firm.

He looked to be heading for Leuven after the Belgians had an offer accepted, but that ended up falling apart after talks between the player and Chris Coleman, his former boss at Sunderland, fell apart.

Fellow Belgians Beerschot were also in the hunt and had an offer accepted but the 24-year-old snubbed that move. Dutch top flight outfit Fortuna Sittard tabled a bid also but found theirs kicked out by the Scottish Premiership club.

Kimpioka looks set to leave for nothing in the summer after St Johnstone appeared to have missed out in their last chance of a pay day.

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Kimpioka could still find new club and leave St Johnstone

But all may not be lost when it comes to recouping a fee.

Plenty of countries around the world still have their transfer window open and that means offers could still come in for the Swede.

And Valakari admits Kimpioka is still exploring his options. The St Johnstone boss hasn’t ruled out playing him before the end of the season if he does end up staying, but insists he will need to earn his spot back.

“Like I have always said, it is up to Benji,” said the Finnish manager.

“The window is still open in some places, and he is exploring the options that are out there.

“It’s not a problem. The situation is very clear.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
7	KilmarnockKilmarnock	26	8	7	11	31	41	-10	31
8	MotherwellMotherwell	26	9	4	13	30	45	-15	31
9	Heart Of MidlothianHeart Of Midlothian	26	8	6	12	35	36	-1	30
10	Ross CountyRoss County	26	7	8	11	27	47	-20	29
11	DundeeDundee	26	7	6	13	38	55	-17	27
12	St JohnstoneSt Johnstone	26	6	3	17	29	51	-22	21

“We will see as the days and weeks go on – I certainly haven’t ruled Benji out of playing.

“At the moment there are so many things happening off the field it’s not ideal for Benji and for the team.

“But that can change, and as with everyone, the bottom line is how you train – how you train decides what happens.

“At the moment, players are ahead of him but if Benji gets back to top form he will play because he benefits us.

“We all know what he can contribute, and I’d be more than happy to take him back, but at the moment he has to earn that.”

Can St Johnstone get a fee for Kimpioka?

Given how hard it seemed to be for clubs to do a deal for the frontman in January, it would not be a surprise to see any interested parties struggle again.

Having had the chance of two decent moves to Belgium, which would also have earned St Johnstone a bit of coin, he opted to stay where he was.

That’s despite Kimpioka previously snubbing Saints contract talks and making it clear he would not be entertaining them.

The smart money would be on him staying put until the end of the season and leaving for nothing.