JIMMY Floyd Hasselbaink is hoping a patient approach to summer recruitment will pay dividends for Burton Albion this pre-season.
With just one week to go until the first team squad return to pre-season training, Hasselbaink is continuing to speak to players and agents as he looks to strengthen his squad for the 2022/23 campaign.
Hasselbaink, speaking to the Brewers’ official website via Zoom, says while everyone wants their squad completed as quickly as possible, it is important to wait for the right players.
The Brewers boss also confirmed that some players may well move out as well as in during the summer transfer window.
“There are a lot of calls going on,” Hasselbaink said. “We are making plans, and we’re trying to materialise them in the off-season.
“We do need to recruit - we had a really good beginning of last season but fell off a little bit in January and February.
“We picked it back up but as a staff we need to learn from that, try to get the squad stronger again and maintain that.
“Those are the challenges that we are finding at the moment.
“We’ve spoken to a few players and obviously I’m taking calls all day long from agents.
“Do we want to get our squad ready as quickly as possible? Yes, but sometimes we have to wait for certain individuals that we think are really going to strengthen us.
“We want to make as strong a squad as possible and make the supporters as proud as we can.
“It’s now looking more and more at who is available (as well as) how many players of ours are going to go, who wants to go and who are we going to let go, and also who we are going to try to recruit.
“Hopefully we can get to sign a few new players very soon.”
Hasselbaink’s plans for pre-season include the recently-announced warm weather training camp in Portugal, where the Brewers will not only be put through their paces but will take on Scottish Premiership side Hibernian.
The Brewers went on a similar pre-season trip in 2015, during Hasselbaink’s first tenure as manager, to Ermelo in the Netherlands, and the Brewers boss is keen to see the benefits the squad will gain both on and off the pitch.
“It’s an important time (in Portugal),” said Hasselbaink.
“To bond, to get to know each other, especially when there are new players.
“But it’s also to work hard, to get the team spirit going and to get the foundation, I think it’s a very important time.