Time is running short in the summer transfer window and Swindon Town are still in need of new players to turn this squad into one ready to compete.

The transfer window will close at 11 pm on August 30 and Mark Kennedy has said that Swindon want three new faces through the door by then. Kabongo Tshimanga has since arrived from Peterborough United and so we will assume that means two players remain on the list.

For one final time this summer, I shall reprise my role of Swindon’s Director of Football and suggest who those players should be.

The first one has been rumbling along all summer is the need for another goalkeeper to both challenge Jack Bycroft and also allow Redman Evans to gain experience elsewhere on loan.

There are two routes you can go with this signing, either add another ambitious goalkeeper to properly push Bycroft or a more experienced EFL veteran to lend him some more experience.

The PFA’s friendly against Cambridge United this week helps to find two goalkeepers who are on the lookout for a new club.

 

 

30-year-old Jamal Blackman spent some of this summer on trial with Chesterfield but couldn’t agree a contract. He would be the deluxe end of this scale having played exclusively at a higher level than Swindon before. At six-foot-six he is a serious presence between the sticks, averaged 9.22 accurate long balls per 90 minutes last season, and has also been effective coming off his line and sweeping.

Another route could be the other goalkeeper in that game, Jordan Amissah. Another six-foot-six goalkeeper despite having only played eight EFL matches, could come in as a back-up with the potential to create a tussle for the number one shirt.

The other way of thinking about this could be Rob Lainton. The 34-year-old left Wrexham at the end of last season and his last few years in North Wales saw him become an understudy to Ben Foster and Arthur Okonkwo, so he would be used to the role and could help mentor Bycroft as well as being good enough to step in and play if needed.

The other position of need is a creative midfield player. Town’s work in the market, especially targeting John Bostock and Gavin Kilkenny, is curious as both are deep-lying playmakers rather than someone who will play higher up, suggesting that they don’t intend on signing a more advanced player. However, I feel that it should remain a priority whether Town continue with the 352 or even shift to a 343 with the signing of Kabongo Tshimanga.

Going back to the PFA for a permanent suggestion, Exeter City’s Harry Kite remains available after starting just nine games last season. A stalwart for the Grecians since 2019, Kite could add that passing quality Swindon presently lack. His assist numbers have never been stellar but in League One and League Two he has been very good with progressing the ball through his passing and also as a dribbler.

Then if we are to use up one of the two loan slots Swindon still have available, Caylan Vickers from Brighton would be exciting. Having joined from Reading in January, Swindon could provide him with regular football this season. He was a joy to watch against Town in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy last season as a mercurial forward with the talent to make things happen. He got three goals and three assists in League One last season although had fallen down the pecking order after a quick start. With time running out to secure a temporary move away, he could be that player capable of making something from nothing.