Neil Critchley reflects on Blackpool's 'eventful' deadline day, keeping hold of Josh Bowler and the failure to sign a central midfielder

Neil Critchley admits Blackpool’s transfer deadline day was a dramatic way to end the window - despite no major moves going through.
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Is this the Blackpool starting line-up Neil Critchley will pick against Bristol ...

The only bits of business completed on Monday were departures, as Bez Lubala joined Northampton Town on loan while Joe Nuttall finalised his permanent move to Scunthorpe United.

That doesn’t tell the full story whatsoever though, as the final day of Blackpool’s deadline went right down to the wire.

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Both Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest lodged strong interest in Josh Bowler, but the in-form and in-demand winger remains with the club.A departure was on the cards though, with Manchester City winger Morgan Rogers lined up as a potential loan replacement should a move for Bowler transpire.

The Seasiders, meanwhile, had offers knocked back for Oxford United’s Cameron Brannagan and Peterborough United captain Ollie Norburn.

Critchley’s press conference this morning ahead of tomorrow’s game against Bristol City was his first opportunity to reflect on the madness of deadline day.

“Not a lot happened, but I can assure you a lot did happen on Monday,” he told The Gazette.

While very little went through on deadline day, plenty was happening in the background at Bloomfield RoadWhile very little went through on deadline day, plenty was happening in the background at Bloomfield Road
While very little went through on deadline day, plenty was happening in the background at Bloomfield Road

“It was quite a busy day, quite an eventful day.

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“It might appear that not a lot happened but I can assure you that was far from the case.”

When asked if Bowler staying put was down to other clubs, notably Forest, failing to meet the club’s asking price, Critchley added: “You’ve got to know your own player’s value first and foremost.

“We didn’t want one of our best players to be leaving the club without being able to replace him as well, so timing is crucial.”

One of Blackpool’s main priorities in January was to bolster their options in central midfield, where they remain light.

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Ryan Wintle was recalled by Cardiff City at the start of the month, Matty Virtue and Grant Ward remain long-term absentees through injury and Kevin Stewart, while back fit, has only made three appearances all season.

However, their numbers were boosted with the early return of Ethan Robson from his loan spell at MK Dons.

Nevertheless, the Seasiders tried hard to lure Brannagan and Norburn to Bloomfield Road and, at point, it looked as though both could arrive, plus Rogers, should Bowler have left.

When asked if there was any disappointment about the club’s failure to bring in a central midfielder, Critchley told The Gazette: “No, there wasn’t disappointment.

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“You can really get caught up in the last 24 hours, it can be built up to a crescendo and a bit of a circus, but I think we’re very good at sense-checking each other.

“We’ve got good communication throughout the club, therefore we make good collective decisions for the benefit of this football club.

“It’s easy to forget the work that’s already been done throughout the whole of January, you just look at that one single day.

“As I said at Fulham, I’d be perfectly happy with this group of players if nothing happened between then and 11pm on Monday night and that was the case.

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“I’m comfortable with the players we’ve got and we’ve got full confidence in our squad.”

One of the main facets of Blackpool’s transfer window was to move players on, which they managed to do well in order to streamline the squad.

Joining Lubala and Nuttall in leaving Bloomfield Road last month were Teddy Howe, Demetri Mitchell, Oliver Sarkic and Daniel Gretarsson.

“That was really important,” Critchley said.

“We had a big training squad for the first half of the season and that can sometimes be difficult to manage.

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“Sometimes it’s not always about the players you bring in, it’s about the players that leave as well and it was right for them. It was right for those players to get their careers going again.

“We’ve got a smaller group now to work with and I remember saying last January, sometimes you have to invest in the people already in the building and place your trust in the process, trusting your training and the players you’ve already got in front of you.

“We all do it, we’re all guilty of looking at what’s over the garden fence and you forget about what’s in your own garden.

“I’m happy with the work we’ve done. We’ve streamlined the squad and I’m hoping with 18 games to go we will see the benefit of that now.”

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