John Eustace insisted Blackburn Rovers must reinvest some of the money from Sam Szmodics’ sale to boost their squad.
Rovers’ star man left to join Ipswich Town on Friday in a deal worth an initial £9million, plus add-ons.
The big question now is how much will be spent in the final weeks of the transfer window. Rovers have brought four new faces to the club but Eustace wants the same again, as a minimum, to improve his squad.
The head coach again emphasised the importance of boosting the areas they are light. Not just with bodies but with quality players that will undoubtedly improve the team.
“I expected him to stay, I wanted him to stay,” he said on Szmodics’ exit. “He’s a fantastic lad, of course it’s the premier league but I wanted him to stay. The rapport he has with the group, the staff and the fans was amazing.
“I was really intrigued to see how the group would cope with losing him. Coming to Norwich City, away from home, to a tough environment, and I was very happy with the response.
“There are players here who want to be the main man and that’s very pleasing. Sammie is gone, he was the best player in the Championship, in my opinion. Now it gives someone else an opportunity to step up and take the limelight.”
On recruitment, he added: “It’s a huge two weeks. I keep stressing that we need the right players who will make us better, not just bodies to fill the squad.
“If we want to be competitive then we have to spend some of that money to make sure there is really good competition for places. When players come in, I want the players to think ‘That’s a great signing and it’ll make us better’.
“Up to now, the boys who have come in, they have done well. But we still need three or four to make sure we’re a really good team.
“Not really (haven’t had assurances). It’s only just happened yesterday and I’ve been focused on papering the team. That’s the most important. I hope whatever we have to put back into the team, we spend it well and bring lots of top players in to make sure the dressing room is strong. You can see we’re light in certain areas.
“At full-back, we have young Leo (Duru) who was on the bench. He nearly came on but if something happens to the full-backs, the midfield players, we are very light in those areas.
“You can see that we’re four or five players short in areas. We need a competitive bench and we have to use the money wisely. That’s down to the recruitment team and the board to see what money we get from the deal. We’re not close to anything at the moment.”
