‘We might have to be a little bit patient’ - Hurst to take his time in the transfer market

Paul Hurst began work as Ipswich manager on Monday. Picture: Steve Waller (Image: � Copyright Stephen Waller)

The 43-year-old revealed, at his official unveiling on June 12, that his priority is to add two wingers to what he describes as a ‘good’ but ‘imbalanced’ squad.

In addition, it’s likely that he’ll want to sign at least one centre-back to compete with Luke Chambers and Adam Webster, while a striker replacement will be needed following David McGoldrick’s contract expiring.

First Hurst wants to assess what he’s got though. The Blues players don’t return to pre-season training until a week on Monday, though Bartosz Bialkowski and Jonas Knudsen will get extra time off after the World Cup, while Tristan Nydam and Flynn Downes could be away with England at the Euro U19 Championships towards the end of July.

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“I think there are a lot of good players here already,” said Hurst. “Last season wasn’t a disaster by any stretch and I know there were a lot of injuries which had an impact, maybe, on the final league position.

“I think, in general, it will be a case of returning (to pre-season) with what we’ve got. We might have to be a little bit patient in terms of bringing players in.

“There’s a World Cup and England (youth) tournaments that are going on and that affects us straight away in terms of when I might actually be able to see all my players.

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“Everyone is in that position though, so the window may be a bit of a slow burner this summer. In an ideal world I’d have four or five lads in, that’s the squad and I know where I’m going... but that very rarely happens in football.”

In terms of potential outgoing players, Hurst added: “It’s not a case of coming in and ripping everything up, but we’ll bring some new ideas. I have my principles and how the players fit into that only time will tell.

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“I think until you are actually working with someone you are not quite sure. You’ve got a rough idea, but some players might respond better to the previous manager and some might respond better to myself.

“You would envisage everyone being really enthusiastic and giving their all for the first couple of weeks and then after that maybe things change slightly. You have to give it a little bit of time, but I do believe in first impressions.”