Smith Contract Talks On Hold

Smith, a smash hit at Pittodrie in his first season, has settled in the Aberdeen area and with only one year left on his current deal he wishes to begin talks about a new contract this month.

However the Scotland international will have to wait until Jimmy has finished his summer transfer activity, including ending the Steven Hammell saga.

Calderwood said: "Once we have sorted out who else we are going to bring to the club then the next thing on the agenda will be speaking to Jamie about a new contract.

"It will be easier to do that when we know what the cover for left back will be and then we can get on with sorting Jamie out."

Aberdeen-Mad believes that Hammell will sign for the Dons as reported on June 1, but the former Motherwell left-back has been dragging his heels as his agent makes a last-ditch bid to obtain a more lucrative deal south of the border.

Another stumbling block to Smith extending his contract may be the limited budget at Pittodrie.

Calderwood added: "Jamie wants to sign, but it is also a question of finances and whether we can afford the deal he wants.

"Things are still very tight budget-wise, but hopefully everything will go well and we will be able to come to an agreement".