The Romanian striker has told the Highland News that he DID NOT want to quit the club last year and is only chasing the £130,000 his SPL contract confirmed he is owed.

This week in an exclusive interview Niculae told the HN: "I could not speak out before as the case was with FIFA, but it's important that people know I am telling the truth."

Coupled with another action over a disputed £90,000 signing-on fee which is on-going through the city's sheriff court, the club stand to lose £220,000 in total, which is a staggering amount for any club in Scotland to sustain.

FIFA last month ordered the Inverness club to pay the player 142,500 Euros, which is 30 per cent of the transfer fee paid to ICT by Dinamo Bucharest, the club he is still with since his switch last year.

Caley Thistle are working with their lawyers at present before taking appeal proceedings to the Court of Sport Arbitration.

ICT argue that a clause in the striker's contract states that he was not entitled to any payment because he instigated the move.

The hitman, who scored 10 goals in his 37 games for the Caley Jags and was a favourite with the fans, insists he was not pushing for a move and was delighted to be playing top level football in Scotland.

Speaking from Bucharest, he said: "I was happy in Inverness and, as one of only two players from Scotland to play in Euro 2008 (the other being Dutchman Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink) I was delighted to be there.

"The move to Inverness had worked for me as I was scoring goals and my form helped to get back to the Euros, which was a dream. I made a lot of friends in Inverness and the supporters were terrific to me.

"I had one year left in my contract and I wasn't interested in talking to another club as I wanted to continue to play for Inverness. There was then the question over whether they could afford my wages and the offers soon arrived and the transfer was worked out for me to come back to Dinamo.

"I have everything written in black and white, according to international rules, while Inverness have just come forward with stories. You can't go into any court just with stories, you need proof and I have presented that and FIFA made its decision."

As the ICT prepare to appeal to the Court of Sport Arbitration, Niculae was asked whether he's aware how damaging his successful case could be to the now First Division club.

He said: "I am not asking for money that does not belong to me. It was in my contract that I was due this amount for being transferred. The club are now in Division One and they probably have less money, but by taking this to the Court of Arbitration they stand to lose even more which is disappointing and I'd rather that didn't happen.

"The chairman George Fraser has not been in touch. You have called me and I have spoken, so can he. He has my number."

The 28-year-old, who is battling back from an ankle injury at Dinamo Bucharest, insists this cash wrangle has not soured his love for Scotland and even hinted a desire to return in the future.

Romanian striker Marius Niculae says he will be forever grateful to ICT for helping him reach Euro 2008, but claims the cash he is after from the Inverness club is rightly his as he never wanted to leave last year. Ken Macpherson

He explained: "I have said all along that I loved my time and the people in Scotland. I am not asking for anything I am not entitled to and I am 100 per cent confident, having spoken to my lawyers, that I will win this.

"Who knows what will happen in the future, perhaps I would like to come back and play in Scotland?"

When asked if ICT would be out of the question, he laughed before adding: "Well, you never know. Never say never. Situations change and people move on, but my priority is to get back playing for Dinamo Bucharest.

"Our season has not been too good as we have dropped a number of points, although there are just three points between us and first place."

Steve Cairns, meanwhile, who helped broker the deal to bring Niculae to Scotland, told the HN that the club wanted to sell the striker rather than be told by the player he was leaving.

He explained: "I'm very disappointed and so is Marius that it has come to this because Marius never requested a transfer.

"I was at all the meetings between Marius and the club and it was more a case of the club wanted to sell him.

"He made it clear that he didn't want to go to Kaiserslautern. If he was to move on, he wanted to go to Dinamo.

"It's been very difficult for me because I live in Inverness. Caley Thistle obviously saw an opportunity to make a decent profit by selling Marius because he was playing for Romania in last summer's European Championships and I do not blame them for that. A club the size of Inverness has to try and make a profit.

"I was never an agent for Marius, I am a friend of his and I act as an advisor. For example, I was never at the meetings in Dinamo Bucharest.

"I have no idea how much he is earning, that is not by business. However, there is no way that I would have been supportive of him if I didn't think he was telling the truth through all this. FIFA verified his claim that he wasn't lying."

Cairns confirmed that as well as this crunch FIFA decision, the player has two civil actions against the club going through Inverness Sheriff Court – one for £90,000 he argues is due from his signing on fee and a separate claim for £1,000 for unlawful deduction from his wages.

sports@highland-news.co.uk

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