It may have been a difficult summer off the field for Phil Parkinson, but the Charlton boss has finally been able to turn his attentions to Saturday's (3pm) seasonal opener against Wycombe Wanderers.
With talks regarding the potential purchase of Charlton still ongoing, Parkinson has been somewhat restricted in his quest to strengthen his side ahead of the new League One campaign.
The Addicks manager, though, has recruited three defenders in the form of Miguel Llera, Frazer Richardson and Christian Dailly - and Parkinson is hoping he will be able to add to his squad in the not-too-distant future.
Speaking to the media ahead of the clash with the Chairboys, Parkinson said: "It has been a tricky pre-season in terms of what has been going on behind the scenes. But the attitude of the players has been first class.
"We're not the only club in this situation, but I can't praise the lads enough for their attitude and application. For various reasons, my hands have been tied and I like to think the supporters understand that.
"In terms of our recruitment we're behind where we want to be, but some things are taken out of your control as a manager and you have to deal with the hand you're given. We haven't sold anyone, apart Mark Hudson, and although we haven't added as many as we'd like at this stage, it will happen."
Despite the acquisition of his new defensive trio, Parkinson is still keen to increase his options at the back as a long, arduous season looms.
He continued: "The nucleus of the squad is good but we need improving in certain areas to make ourselves into a promotion-winning side. We're still looking to bring in defenders. We're light on numbers there, and when circumstances allow that, then we'll do it.
"We've had talks with players all summer but they don't wait for ever. Hopefully we'll be in a position to get them over the finishing line soon and we can make this into an even stronger squad."
Newly-promoted Wycombe are likely to present a tough test for the Addicks this weekend as both sides look to hit the ground running in League One.
Aside from Dean Sinclair (knee), Parkinson has no injury problems ahead of a fixture he was looking forward to getting his teeth into.
"It's going to be a big day for both teams," mused Parkinson. "We've watched all their games in pre-season and they've had some good performances, so we know its going to be a hard game. I've got a lot of respect for Wycombe and their manager [Peter Taylor]. Fitness-wise we're ready. The players have worked hard and we feel we're prepared for the game on Saturday."
Parkinson also responded to reports linking two of his strikers, Andy Gray and Chris Dickson, with respective moves to Barnsley and Gillingham, while also confirming his interest in Plymouth Argyle winger Jason Puncheon.
"Jason is a player we've spoken to but that's another scenario where we're not in a position to progress at the moment," stated Parkinson, who said there had been no firm bids for Jonjo Shelvey, and labelled a story in a weekend newspaper concerning the midfielder and Chelsea as 'pure speculation.'
"Barnsley have been talking to us all summer [about Gray], but at the moment the deal just doesn't add up and it's nowhere near the valuation we've got of the player," he declared. "Andy played for a lot of last season with a stress fracture. He's now fit and he's trained well. He's available for selection and he could be a big player for us this year.
"Gillingham have been talking to us about Chris all summer, and we keep telling them he's not going there. We've now said to them that we'll let him go there if they give us one of their strikers in exchange. I won't give you the name of him, but you might be able to guess. If that deal doesn't happen, then Chris isn't going to go there."
The immediate futures of out-of-contract duo Jonathan Fortune and Matt Holland are still unresolved as well, Parkinson insisted.
Fortune has been on trial at Sheffield United, while Holland has been training with Colchester United and Parkinson added: "We were really unable to offer Matty a contract at the end of the season, and he chose to do his pre-season at Colchester, which is nearer his home.
"Matty's a fantastic lad. I've spoken to Matty a couple of times over the summer but, as it stands, we still don't know clearly where we stand. Jon is exactly the same. He wasn't interested in the level of contract we offered him and he was within his rights to go to Sheffield United on trial. As far as I know they haven't offered him a deal yet, though."
0
Comments
plenty of food for thought and speculation there.
Still a lot to happen it would appear.
Great that he is finally (allowed) to talk openly about what has been happening behind the scene re players comming & going this summer and looks as though there is more to come !
looking forward to 3pm Saturday.