Bowyer already has Blackpool line-up in mind

Gary Bowyer says he has a good idea of what team he is likely to pick for Blackpool's first game of the season at Wycombe Wanderers.
Gary Bowyer has a good idea of his opening day line-up at Wycombe WanderersGary Bowyer has a good idea of his opening day line-up at Wycombe Wanderers
Gary Bowyer has a good idea of his opening day line-up at Wycombe Wanderers

Pool begin the new campaign with a trip to the newly-promoted Chairboys, who finished third in League Two last season.

Blackpool, meanwhile, will be looking to build on last season’s 12th-placed finish in League One in what was their first season back in the third tier.

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While Bowyer says he has got a team in mind for this weekend’s trip to Adams Park, he insists there are still one or two places that remain up for grabs.

“I’ve got a good idea, that’s for sure,” he said.

“There’s a couple of places that are probably still available that we’ll look at and work on over the course of this week.”

It’s been another major rebuild for Blackpool this summer, with 12 new players being brought in to replace a number of players who have departed the club.

Ten players were released at the end of last season but several more have also since departed, including former first-team regulars Clark Robertson, Colin Daniel and Kyle Vassell.

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While Bowyer is happy with who he has managed to bring in so far, he warns it will take time for his squad to hit the ground running.

“A hell of a lot of players have come in this summer and it’s going to take time for them, that will only get better with playing games,” he added.

“But they’ve had six weeks together while new arrivals have also come during that period. So it will take time, but it’s a challenge we’re looking forward to.

“We’ve signed some good footballers and they’re going to get better, for sure.

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“You look at the potential of quite a lot of them, they’re going to be a good asset to the club.

“We’ve picked up a couple of injuries that we hope will clear up very quickly because we need as fully fit a squad as possible to get through the season.

“Jimmy Ryan still has an issue with his knee from the other week, but he trained with us on Friday. Hopefully with a good week in training he won’t be too far away.

“Ryan McLaughlin tweaked his hamstring at Fylde after not having a full pre-season with us, but we don’t think that will be too bad.

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“Rowan Roache we saw in the ground last week, he’s had an operation on his foot. So we’re happy everything has gone well with that.

“Paudie O’Connor has picked up a dead leg but he’ll be fine, he’ll be training this week.

“That meant we only had six outfield subs at Crewe, so if we could bring one or two more bodies in then we will. But the pool to choose from is getting shorter and shorter.”