Matt Taylor targeting a Shrewsbury shopping spree

The boss is hoping to make further additions this week ahead of Saturday’s League One opener against Cheltenham.

But he is also prepared to wait if necessary and has promised he and director of football Micky Moore will keep doing all they can until the window shuts on September 1.

“We have spent a lot of time recently, both Micky and myself, looking at players,” he said. “We are hopeful we can move some conversations forward this week.

“Are we in the market for good players? Yes. Is it going to take longer than we want? Probably.

“But one thing I do know is the window doesn’t shut until the end of next month. We will definitely be in the mix for players until then.”

Town signed off their pre-season campaign with Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Notts County and while Taylor is happy where things stand, just days before the season begins, he expects his team will look different a month from now.

Six new players have already come through the door since his appointment last month, while midfielder Town also signed Carl Winchester on a permanent deal, after he impressed while on loan from Sunderland last season.

Strengthening forward areas is the primary focus right now, while Town also lost defender George Nurse to another long-term injury last week.

Taylor said: “What I do know is the team you saw out there on Saturday (against Notts County) and the squad you saw out there will be different by the end of August. I know that much because there are still areas of the pitch we need to strengthen.

“We want as many as we can get. That is the simple answer.”

Taylor has been encouraged by what he has seen so far from the players already on board and will spend this week fine tuning preparations for the Cheltenham match.

“Saturday marked the last day of pre-season if you like because next week is all about building up to the most important fixture,” he continued. “We have to be ready for that first game. Are we going to be ready? I think we will. There are elements during the week that we need to practice.

“There will be lots of information going into the players but what I do know is we have got a group of hungry footballers who are most definitely physically and mentally ready for the season.”

Striker Dan Udoh scored his first goal since returning from long-term injury in Saturday’s match.

“It has been a tough pre-season for him because he has not had the exposure other players had last season playing games,” said Taylor. “He will get better. He will become stronger physically. I think at the moment you see a really hungry Dan and that is what we want.”