Huntelaar: I'll decide on contract after EUROs

Schalke striker Klaas Jan Huntelaar has postponed contract negotiations with his club until after UEFA EURO 2012. The Dutchman's current contract still has over a year to run on it, but his prolific goalscoring record with 40 goals in 38 matches in all competitions this season has attracted plenty of interest from other clubs and convinced Schalke to offer him a new deal in a bid to warn off the competition. They want him to sign a new two-year extension and are prepared to go to the upper limit of their wage structure to convince him to stay. However, he told Bild newspaper that he does not want to consider his future until after the EUROs. "There will be time to gather my thoughts after the season," he said. "Before then, I want to focus on scoring goals and not let myself be distracted at the European Championships." Every goal that Huntelaar scores is making him more and more expensive to Schalke, though, as not only does his market value increase, but also his expectations in terms of wages. With top clubs around Europe able to offer him a better package than Schalke, a positive EURO 2012 may mean the Bundesliga club simply cannot fend off the competition, although Schalke's president Clemens Tonnies believes Huntelaar's decision will not be purely based on money. "We are making Klaas a top offer" he told Sport1 television. "I believe that the well-being factor will play a role in his decision and he is very close to his Dutch home here with Schalke."