Seasiders Set For Glut of Signings

Blackpool are about to make a breakthrough in the transfer market in the next couple of days.

Ian Holloway has found it extremely difficult to bring in the players he wants to challenge the Premiership over the course of pre-season.

With just five days to go until the start of the new campaign, the Seasiders looked woefully short on numbers in yesterday’s 2-1 defeat at home to Hibernian.

But reports around the media and in the press are that new signings are imminent. The manager said that he expects four of five players at the club today, one of which has already had a medical.

Increased speculation surrounding Manchester United’s Craig Cathcart leads us to believe that he could be the first man to put pen to paper on a ‘Pool deal.

The 21-year-old defender has had promising loan spells at both Watford and Plymouth in the past two years – becoming a stand out for both sides.

The Daily Mail are reporting that he will sign for £500,000.

The same paper are also reporting that Stephen Dobbie could be close to a move to Bloomfield Road.

There is yet to be any fresh news on his Swansea team-mate Angel Rangel, but the player did pull out of their game at Hull City on Saturday. Brendan Rodgers has said that this was down to a niggle and not because he’s expecting to move.

Another name which continuingly gets mentioned – and for good reason – is Marlon Harewood. The striker has been on the Fylde Coast for the past week and is a top target, with the front three desperately in need of strengthening. However, Ollie said yesterday that the goalposts have been moved with regards to a contract and that’d need ironing out.

Sky Sports are today reporting that Ludovic Sylvestre is to have a medical soon as well. The French midfielder has played for giants Barcelona and Sparta Prague in his time and will join from Czech club Mlada Boleslav – who have recent experience in the UEFA Cup.

The player himself had been linked with the Seasiders earlier in pre-season and last season regularly chipped in with goals from midfield.

Meanwhile, Owen Coyle has invited ‘Pool to bid again for young Bolton midfielder Chris Basham: ‘Ollie rang me on Friday and informed me he was interested.

‘I said I didn’t want to lose him because he’s a young player that we’ve got high hopes for at this football club.

‘But I can totally accept that young Bash wants to play.

‘He probably feels the competition is fierce in the midfield and he maybe thinks he’s down the pecking order a little bit.

‘What I said was that if Blackpool put forward a bid that we thought was fair, then we would allow permission for them to speak to him, on the basis of being fair to the kid.’