Wally Downes said he’s already looking at making improvements in the January transfer window, but he has made it clear that he wants to fully assess the current squad first.
Speaking during an update for iFollow, our new manager talked about the importance of assessing what he’s already got among the current crop.
“There is some money to spend,” said Wally. “It’s not a great deal, but I’ve got to be looking at the players we already have here because for the time until January they don’t change. I’ve got to get the best out of the players I have here. If we have a good period it makes my job easier because I’m more than happy to give this group a chance to get us out of the mess we are in. After the next run of games we could be looking at a completely different scenario, as we get towards the transfer window. Players may have proven themselves, they may have turned the corner, and be more confident so that they are playing better. Instead of plugging holes, perhaps you would be trying to improve in a different way. We are certainly spending more time than I’d like to after training for preparing to look at targets, but they will change as the results change.”
Wally added that taking a look at the talent beneath the current squad is also something he is doing on a daily basis.
“On the plus side with the youngsters, I’m trying to integrate them into the first-team squad to look at them,” said Wally. “The intensity that we train at with the first-team is a lot higher than those games (development matches) tend to be. They are not as competitive as I’d like, that’s not our games, but that competition in general. I will learn more about our young players training with the first-team than I would going to watch Under-23 games. You are looking at under 20 games a season really and it’s just a progression from youth football. I need to see them out training and playing with us, or out training and playing using the loan system, so that they’re playing men’s football. Although it’s a good stepping stone, if they’re not performing in that competition by time they are 20, that league isn’t a good league for the older players.”