'Very well' - Portsmouth CEO provides key transfer update and reveals when signings will be announced

Andy Cullen has revealed Pompey’s summer recruitment plans are going ‘very well’.

The Blues intend to have a number of new additions in the building in time for the start of pre-season. But the Fratton Park club’s chief executive admitted nothing will be made public until the transfer window becomes operational on Friday, June 14.

It’s a policy Pompey are keen to stick to amid concerns that nothing is ever certain until the transfer period officially opens for business.

It meant Blues fans were met with a raft of new signings last June, with Will Norris, Christian Saydee, Conor Shaughnessy, Terry Devlin and Anthony Scully unveiled as new Pompey players within hours of the summer window opening.

That is something the Fratton faithful could be treated to again this year - especially with John Mousinho keen to have the majority of his squad in place for pre-season testing on Thursday, June 27 and the resumption of training on Monday, July 3.

Both Mousinho and sporting director Rich Hughes are currently on holiday. But when asked how summer recruitment was going by BBC Radio Solent, Cullen said: ‘Yeah, very well. Obviously, we’ve still got a League One season that isn’t completed yet, with the play-off final on Saturday and the Championship play-off final happening next weekend as well.

‘But we’ve had a lot of targets and a lot of conversations in place for some months now and recruitment never stops - it just doesn’t suddenly start when the transfer window opens or shuts, it’s an ongoing process.

‘So lots of discussions, lots of talks. We identified a number of targets prior to the end of the season. Rich and John are trying to get a break on holiday and I don’t think their phones are ever off. Twas ever thus when it comes to the summer transfer window and recruitment, so hopefully we’ll start to see some steady progress.

‘The aim has been, where we possibly can, to get a number of new faces into the building in time for the start of pre-season and that is something that served us well last year. We’re very keen to replicate that for the 2024-25 season.’

With 10 players told they can leave Pompey this summer and departures for Joe Morrell and Zak Swanson also a real possibility, another busy transfer window is expected ahead of the club’s Championship return. Last summer saw 14 new faces introduced, although neither Hughes or Mousinho have so far relayed how many signings would be made this year.

As chief executive, Cullen will be at the centre of those deals. He added further detail why fans will have to wait for official confirmation of new arrivals.

‘Nothing is ever certain until the window opens,’ the CEO said. ‘There are ways deals can be completed, but it’s very difficult to announce anything properly because anything can happen.

‘So you just want to protect yourself and make sure anything you do and you might think that you’ve got, you’ve suddenly alerted a competitor. We did that reasonably well last year with some of the deals nicely tied up prior to the window opening. That will be the same this year.’