Paul Hurst expects Shrewsbury Town transfer business to hot up
Paul Hurst expects transfer business to pick up now players are back for pre-season – with Shrewsbury thought to be on the verge of more deals.
Hurst is understood to be keen on shifting a number of players that barely featured last term while a raft of new additions are still expected on top of the three Town have already secured.
Shrewsbury’s training camp in Portugal, which commences the week after next, is in place to help the new Town squad familiarise and bond ahead of the season.
Hurst believes that, once players have reported back for pre-season up and down the country, the panic and realism will kick in. But the Town chief remains cautious about revealing the identity of his targets until they are signed.
“Certainly things are starting to move generally,” said Hurst. “The general consensus speaking to other managers and what I’m seeing is that it’s been a pretty slow market.
“There are a couple of things that, in theory, aren’t a million miles away but until that signature is on a piece of paper and it’s registered you are always slightly cautious in terms of getting too far ahead of yourself.
“So you’re still looking at other targets to have half-an-eye on in case something changes.
“Work’s going on through myself, Chris (Doig) and Adam (Henshall, recruitment administrator) in particular – I’m pretty relaxed about it all.”
Town are rumoured to be interested in taking Manchester United goalkeeper Dean Henderson on loan.
The boss and assistant Chris Doig have returned from a League Managers’ Association (LMA) training course for the beginning of Town’s pre-season schedule.
Hurst added: “Now clubs are reporting back, and we’re one of the earliest, I’m sure players will start to panic, agents will get more realistic. I expect things to really pick up.
“There’ll still be players holding out or maybe circumstances change and they become a little bit desperate almost.”
Chief executive Brian Caldwell confirmed that Town have ‘a number of balls in the air’.
“It’s started to come together,” he said. “We expected as pre-season starts and with us going to Portugal as well, it’s important to get as many player signed up sooner rather than later.”
