Steve Cotterill: Shrewsbury finances will be January ‘hurdle’
Steve Cotterill says finances could be a “hurdle” for Shrewsbury Town when it comes to their January transfer dealings.
Salop signed nine players during the summer window, including the three deadline-day signings of Carl Winchester, Christian Saydee and Rob Street on season-long loan deals.
But Shrews have a limited number of players to pick from at the moment with five first-team regulars missing due to injury leaving them with very little depth.
And the boss says finances could be a problem for Salop when the window opens in the new year.
“I have areas where I think we need to strengthen, but I would not make that public,” the boss said when asked what positions of his squad he thinks he needs to make additions to.
“It would not be too difficult to work out.
“I think the biggest hurdle for me is going to be finance, that is going to be the biggest hurdle.
“It does not help with where we are at the moment (with injuries).
“Because Dan Udoh and George Nurse have been out for three months.
“Aiden O’Brien has been out for four or five months – Julien (Dacosta) and Elliott (Bennett) have been out for a while too.
“It does not help because really what we are doing is we are working off 13 players, and we have been doing that now for a long time.
“So it is not easy.”
Meanwhile, the boss has praised his captain, Luke Leahy, who scored his fourth penalty of the season last weekend.
Leahy was awarded the armband before Town’s first game at Morecambe, and he seems to be relishing the job.
“We are pleased with how he is done so far – long may it continue,” Cotterill said.
“He is noisy. But then he was noisy before he was captain. You hear him before you see him.
“He is a great lad, he loves his football, and he has got an excellent left foot. He is still learning the game when it comes to playing in central midfield.
“But he still wants to work at it. He’s a good, honest pro who has high emotional intelligence. He understands the environment he is in. He understands what players need, and I think that’s really important – emotional intelligence.”
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