Tony Mowbray has been discussing what the club’s plans are for the coming summer transfer window and what his goals are with this current crop of players.
HAS SUMMER PLANNING BEGAN AT SAFC? “That’s ongoing for us, it’s something that’s never stopped I would suggest. As I’ve said in the past I’m not at the forefront of recruitment, I am involved in recruitment. I know our head of recruitment is on a different continent this week and next week doing what he does, watching players, talking to agents, discussing football matters and prices and players. That’s never stopped and wherever we finish the recruitment is still the same. I don’t really know whether we are going to be buying 10 million pound players, five million pound players or one million pound players or 100 thousand pound players I’m not sure so that’s why Stuart is out around the world and trying to find footballers. And I’m sure he’ll have long lists of strikers, I know we’ve been talking about them, who can score goals at the levels they play and if we’re talking strikers right at the top level of the Champions League we are probably talking 100 million, if we’re talking National League we might be talking 100 grand or 200 grand. There are people scoring goals all over the world in all different leagues, you have to try and marry up one that’s a bit better than the one you’re in and he can score lots of goals for you.”
HOW WILL THE SQUAD BE MANAGED FOR THE REST OF THIS CAMPAIGN?
“I think the responsibility of the job, as I’ve been saying all along, is really trying to grow the group really. If we fall away and we can’t achieve anything, we will potentially be giving some young players, who we feel have got potential, some game time to play. I think you’ve got to grow the group, you might find a scenario where all of the loan players just don’t play because they are going back, so we will play our own players and give them some experience. But while we have things to play for and fight for, mathematically we have an opportunity, we will pick teams to try and win football matches. And as we have been doing, give the inexperienced players experience by putting them on the pitch and helping them for the future. I think that’s the job, not necessarily this group and it wasn’t this season, good or bad or however you see it and I think the job is to try and grow this group because next season will be on us before we know it and it’s important you give experience to players you want to take along on the journey.”
