Town boss Roy Keane says there is a big summer ahead for the club with plenty of players moving in and out of Portman Road. The Blues manager says he is targeting four or five signings and will also be looking to offload a number of his current squad members.
Keane said: "This summer is a big, big summer for the football club and for myself and the staff to try and get things right.
"I keep talking about getting good players into the football club, but my focus is very much on characters this summer. I think we have good players, I think everyone can see that, we saw that last week in the first half.
"We have competed against teams in the top six on our day, but we’ve not been consistent enough, we’ve given a lot of late goals away and we’ve dropped crazy points against teams down below us. I’m after four or five ‘men’ in the summer.
"There are two or three players I’m very interested in at the moment and hopefully then one or two more. That will be finalised in the next few weeks when I have a chance to sit down with the owner and the chief executive and discuss those dreaded words — the budget.”
The Blues boss says he may have to wait to make some of his signings but could tie some up sooner rather than later: "We might have to be patient and wait for pre-season to try and get the players we’re after, but there are one or two players whose contracts are up, so if we can put those deals to bed early doors that would be great.
"But I’m sure these players will have options, there’ll be an issue with wages, whether they’ll want to come to a club which has struggled all season. There are lots of hurdles to get over yet. I’m certainly not expecting a relaxing summer, I think it’s going to be fairly busy.
"I’ve not spoken to any players yet, but whether these players are aware of my interest I don’t know. Football’s a small world and sometimes you speak to people who might know them.”
At the other end of the scale, Keane says players will be leaving the club, the Town manager having previously stated that he wants a smaller squad for 2010/11: "There have been a few players at the club for three or four years who are good lads, decent servants, but we have to change the dynamics of the football club.
"We have to or next season we’ll hitting that 60 points mark again, but it’s 70-odd you need to have a chance in the play-offs and we’ve been well short this year and we can’t accept that next year.
"We’ll sit down with the players and their agents over the next few weeks and see where that takes us and make it clear to other clubs which players are available. There are players here under contract who I feel need to move on without a shadow of a doubt.”
Keane feels that there are too many big earners on the fringes at present: "At the moment, in the reserve group, we’ve got too many experienced players on too big wages. I don’t want that at the football club.
"But it’s easier said than done. The players are under contract, they don’t want to move and when it’s clear to them that I don’t see them in my plans some players will just sit tight. It’s about trying to find them the right clubs, but that will be down to their agents.”
Keane reiterated that he feels that it is highly unlikely that Jack Colback will return to Portman Road next season with Steve Bruce viewing the midfielder as part of his first team squad at Sunderland next season.