THE CLOCK finally ticks over to the new year, the no-official-contact charade surrounding Jason Culina and Joel Porter comes to an end, and at last the truth comes out.

We now know that Gold Coast United have offered Culina a $3.6 million three-year deal, including lucrative long-term positions for the player and his wife at Clive Palmer's Mineralogy company. And yet even that might not be enough.

PSV have suddenly decided that Culina is worth hanging onto, and tabled an even bigger offer. Dinamo Zagreb are also upping the ante. So what's a poor boy to do?

With a decision expected by Sunday, it looks like Palmer won't be drawn into a bidding war, as the decision will most likely be based on non-financial considerations. If Culina chooses a rival club Miron Bleiberg says he "will accept it".

Should Culina come home now? If so, the Gold Coast team is suddenly transformed from a very good squad to a brilliant one. That makes a move to Surfers' sunny shores look like an exciting adventure, especially with South Africa 2010 around the corner.

Any team headed by Culina, with Smeltz and Porter up front, would be hot favourites for the A-League championship and Asian qualification. What a brilliant way to finish up your career! And what an exciting prospect for Aussie football fans.

The pluses for Culina include a great lifestyle in a warm climate, guaranteed regular first-team football, a big media spotlight, and the assured adoration of millions of fans around the nation.

But what about John Aloisi's nightmare example? Could crowds at Skilled Park be booing Culina off the pitch in two years? I shudder to think so, and hope the mighty midfielder doesn't seriously entertain such negative thoughts. If he does, perhaps it's one more reason to some home sooner rather than later?

In fact, Culina's return could trigger a wave of Socceroo homecomings, with Kewell, Cahill and Neill also set to hang up their boots down under. But will the expected exodus from Europe happen before or after the World Cup?

Culina might be tempted to stay just one more season with PSV. He knows the A-League door will remain open, and he might think it best to remain with a top-flight European team until the World Cup. But what if he is sitting on the bench for the next 12 months?

He might even decide to see out his career in Europe with a longer-term deal. But the constant rumours of an impending move to Australia suggest otherwise. It looks to me like Jason has his heart set on coming home, and I hope he decides to do it now.

He could conceivably finish his season at PSV just before the Gold Coast team's debut game in Beijing's Olympic Bird's Nest stadium. Now wouldn't that be a nice little stopover, especially on a private jet with a massage table?!

If Culina doesn't come home, however, what's Gold Coast's plan B? They might consider signing a celebrity marquee (a la Dwight Yorke) on a one-year contract, leaving the door open for Culina to reconsider in 2010. Meanwhile, the FFA might consider having two senior marquees - one Aussie and one import. We can only dream.

And if Culina decides to stay in Europe for a longer term, Bleiberg should get straight on the phone to Mile Sterjovski's agent. I can't think of anybody who could better fill that midfield "gap" (such as it is).

Meanwhile, spare a thought for Joel Porter, whose signature is apparently drying on a Gold Coast contract as I write. All this excited talk about Culina is rather stealing the thunder from jumpin' Joel's impending return down under.

And shed a tear (or not) for Hartlepool FC, who ignored Porter's pleas to leave for Wellington at the end of last season. They now admit they have nobody lined up to replace their goal-scoring Aussie, and the financial crisis makes relegation next season a real probability. Poetic justice?