DINAMO DYNAMITE

Kearney hails new loan signing Mihai Popescu

St Mirren last night sealed the signing of Mihai Popescu as boss Oran Kearney hailed a whirlwind 24 hours.

Romanian centre back Popescu, 25, arrives on a loan deal until the end of the season from Dinamo Bucharest.

The defender joins Greg Tansey in signing for the Paisley side this week, while the departure of Adam Eckersley takes the total outgoings to 11 following a relentless transfer window so far.

Kearney couldn’t hide his delight having landed his man as he tipped the hunger of his new recruit to give their relegation rivals food for thought.

But the Nor thern Irishman insists there is no time to rest as he continues to work hard to add to his squad ahead of next weekend’s Scottish Cup fourth- round clash with Alloa.

Kearney told Express Sport: “It has been a very busy day, a busy couple of weeks as well but a lot of it has come to fruition today and I am delighted with the signings that we have managed to get over the line.

“We put a huge amount of background work into getting players in.

“A whole lot of research goes into these signings and we make sure that we have assessed them in every way we possibly can.

“Mihai is at an age in his career where he really wants a crack at getting to Scotland and England.

“He is ready to come and hit the ground running and that is what we really need at this stage

“The standard of the league in Romania is really high.

“He has a real good pedigree and he has played a number of games over there, so we are hoping he makes a smooth transition.

“He is so hungry and it wasn’t a hard sell to him by any means and that can be key.

“He wants to be at St Mirren and I firmly believe he can go on to become a big player for us between now and the end of the season.”

Popescu, who has been a regular for Dinamo this season, looks set to slot in at centre back after the Buddies allowed Alfie Jones to return to parent club Southampton after his loan deal was cut short.

Kearney also revealed there is an option to purchase the defender – although he revealed the price tag is on the high side.

He added: “Dinamo see it is a real good opportunity to put him in the shop window.

“It is a loan and it is only a loan until the summer and there is quite a high price on him if we choose to make it a permanent deal.”

Meanwhile, St Mirren midfielder Cammy Smith was on the verge of a move to Dundee United as the Express went to print.

Smith, last season’s player of the year as the Buddies won the Championship, wi l l return to Tannadice where he enjoyed a loan spell two seasons ago.

The former Aberdeen man has found first-team opportunities scarce this season and was keen to return to regular football.