'Hundreds of names' - Steve Bruce pinpoints scale of Blackpool's current transfer strategy
Steve Bruce states he’s currently looking through hundreds of names as Blackpool prepare for a big summer.
After missing out on the League One play-offs for the second season running, the Seasiders are looking to strengthen their squad ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.
Since being appointed as head coach back in September, Bruce has already implemented a number of changes, and is already eyeing up more.
“Everyone associated with Blackpool wants to be up and around it, I’m jealous of those fighting for the play-offs - that’s where we’ve got to go, and that's where we’ve got to aim for,” he said.
“We’ve been much better since January, we made some big calls then, and of course it’s going to be a big summer of turnaround again.
“Can we get them in, and can we get them settled? Can we get a new squad together that can mount a challenge?
“I’ve got hundreds of names to keep me busy, it is what it is - it’s what we’re here for.”
Change to come for Blackpool this summer
Following his side’s 1-1 draw with Wigan Athletic at the weekend, Bruce admitted that a lot of change could occur at Bloomfield Road over the next few months.
“There’s a lot of work to be done over the summer, we finish next Saturday and it starts,” he stated.
“We’ve got five loan players, four or five that are out of contract, so you can imagine it’s going to be hectic, but that’s normal for the teams at this level, they don’t hand big contracts out - which is understandable. There’s a constant turnaround, but since Christmas I’ve been pleased with our improvement.
“We’ve improved enormously since January, and it’s imperative that we get this one right to get half a new team, maybe a full new team. We’ll have conversations with the players on loan, and see where we end up .
“I wouldn’t say it’ll be a completely different team next season, but we had four loan players playing today and one on the bench, so it could be half a new team, and we’ll see what we can do.
“We’ve been in the division three years and we’ve not been good enough to mount a challenge to get the club where it wants to be. It’s about finding the right team and the right formula, to get the team where it wants to be.”
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