Partick can show De Boer real meaning of sacrifice

Frank de Boer's disclosure last week that he was only going to be paid "pocket money" while at Rangers must have had Derek Whyte tearing his hair out.

Few players now fit the criteria of Partick Thistle's strict wage ceiling, but Whyte - one half of the player-management team at Firhill - knows De Boer's act of philanthropy would have qualified Holland's most-capped player. Now Whyte will get a chance to see for himself what he missed out on when De Boer makes his Rangers debut today, away to the poorest side in the Scottish Premier League.

The Dutchman turned his back on a £2m-a-year salary at Galatasaray and joined the Scottish champions for the rest of the season because he wants to guarantee his presence at Euro 2004. De Boer became rich in his time at Barcelona and the appeal of playing alongside his twin Ronald meant he could afford to waive real wages.

However, you suspect that even De Boer's idea of "pocket money" would be enough to give Partick's co-manager a heart attack. Glasgow's other club have been run on strict guidelines ever since they flirted with closure in 1998: even returning to the top flight last year did not help Thistle. They currently have the smallest overdraft in the debt-ridden SPL, but that is reflected in the wages.

"I can only offer £500 a week and another £250 per appearance, so that means it is impossible to recruit players," said Whyte last week. The former Scotland defender earned enough during his time at Middlesbrough to ensure that he could take a wage cut when he moved to Firhill from Aberdeen in 2002, but he knows others cannot.

The bottom side in the SPL even lost two of their best players, Alex Burns and Stephen Craigan, last summer to Motherwell - who can offer better terms even though they are in administration. Victory against Rangers today is urgent, if only to buy some time in the fight for survival.

"When you see clubs like Dundee and Leeds in trouble, players need to get some sense about salaries," said Whyte. "Partick pay realistic wages but players should realise what a great job this is. I made a sacrifice when I came here. Aberdeen offered me more to stay there, but I wanted to come back to Glasgow after 12 years away for my children's schooling. I was careful with my money when I was at Boro. I never got paid the £30,000 a week that others were on, but I was comfortable."

Whyte and Gerry Britton took over the managerial reins at Firhill in December when Gerry Collins was sacked. Partnerships rarely work, but the pair were awarded the job until the end of the season.

"I am 35 and I want to go into management," said Whyte. "Football is all I have known. I was playing for Celtic at 17. When I was at Boro, Bryan Robson took over as boss and did not rate me. But I dug deeper, worked harder and became his captain. That is what we want our players to do here."