Grayson: It's all to play for
Leeds United boss Simon Grayson has given his squad at Elland Road a vote of confidence by revealing that he is still to launch his first bid of the January transfer window.
Grayson confirmed that no official offers for players had been made or received by Leeds during the first eight days of this month, and the 39-year-old is keeping an open mind about the credentials of the squad he inherited from Gary McAllister two-and-a-half weeks ago.
The United boss takes charge of his third match as manager tomorrow against Carlisle United at Elland Road, and he admitted that he has no plans for a major overhaul of his playing staff after their performance in his first two fixtures against Leicester City and Stockport County.
Grayson is expected to make a number of additions to his squad before the transfer window closes at the end of the month, but he looks likely to steer away from the cull which might have materialised under McAllister.
Grayson said: "We've had no bids put in for any players at this time.
"We've plenty of options and we're forever getting phone calls because this club can attract players. That's not a problem.
"But it's basically me deciding what areas to strengthen and whether the players we can get are better than the ones we've got. They've also got to be here for the right reasons.
"Coupled with me giving the opportunity to the present footballing staff (to impress), we will make inroads in the next 10 days.
"There are still a few doubts over one or two players, and we can't be chopping and changing by having 10 in and 10 out.
"Some players will be part of the squad between now and the end of the season and I'm not going to tinker too much because this is a group who got to the play-off final last season. With one or two adjustments, they won't be far away."
The confident start made by Leeds under Grayson may see him name an unchanged line-up against Carlisle, and striker Jermaine Beckford is expected to be fit after carrying a minor hamstring strain into last weekend's postponed clash with Hereford United.
Grayson admitted the call-off at Edgar Street had been a disappointment after two pleasing results against Leicester and Stockport, saying: "We were desperate to play the game after four points out of six.
"Once you get a start like that you want to keep the momentum going. But on the other hand it gave the players a little bit of time to recharge their batteries after the Christmas period and everything else that had gone off.
"Everyone has responded really well to what I'm asking them to do and what we've tried to do is make them feel like million-pound players again. There are some talented players here.
"It's not for me to comment on what they were doing before but I always try to make sure that players are working hard with a smile on their face. I did that for three years at Blackpool and it helped us along the way.
"If you've got a happy group then it can help you overcome adversity together.
"Players who enjoy themselves tend to express themselves more, and that gives you a better chance of winning matches."
YEP
