Portsmouth chief addresses when Fratton faithful likely to see transfer business in pivotal January window
Andy Cullen has warned the bulk of Pompey’s transfer dealings are likely to arrive towards the end of January’s window.
And he is adamant they won’t be alone - with the majority of clubs following the same recruitment pattern.
A pivotal transfer window for the Blues’ Championship survival hopes opens on New Year’s Day and will remain in place until 11pm on Monday, February 3.
With John Mousinho’s men second from bottom, the pressure is on owners Tornante to hand sporting director Rich Hughes improved financial resources to sign the calibre of players required to avoid relegation.
Strengthening the centre of defence, wide positions and central midfield are high on the wanted list of boss Mousinho.
But Cullen doesn’t anticipate too much business early in the window.
Pompey’s chief executive told The News: ‘A lot of the business clubs conduct in January comes towards the end of the window.
‘For instance, if you are bringing in players on loan, like from Premier League clubs, they sometimes want to hold onto them until the FA Cup third round is out of the way.
‘That was the situation with Myles Peart-Harris last January. A deal with Myles and Brentford was more or less agreed at the beginning of the month, but they then wanted to hold him back to play in the FA Cup.
‘So it wasn’t until the third week in January that - a player who we had shook hands on - could be got over the line. When that happens, you always worry whether that is actually going to materialise, but it did.
‘In January 2023, one signing which did happen earlier was Ryley Towler. The reason it was relatively early in the window was because he was on loan at AFC Wimbledon.
‘A call-back had to be exercised by his parent club Bristol City before January 6-7, so they were able to recall him and we were able to do the deal quickly.
‘A player you might want to take who’s not in a team’s plans for the rest of the season can also take time - even if you want them permanently. Those clubs will want their own replacements first.
‘You can see that is why the majority of business is done in the latter half of a January window.
‘It is highly likely to be the same for us this year, as for a lot of clubs. If players are out of contract it might happen a lot earlier, but not necessarily for those we are either looking to acquire or take on loan.
‘For all clubs, there will be a sprinkling of players coming in early on, then we’ll probably see more activity after the FA Cup.’
It remains to be seen whether they are willing to also dig deep 12 months later to ensure Pompey remain there.
Meanwhile, Cullen admits there will also need to be departures this month, including loaning out players for game time.
He added: ‘You have also got to do a bit of movement to bring others in, but that is very much part of the plan going forward.
‘We also want to give some of our players opportunities on loan as well, particularly when they haven’t had much playing time.’