Morris not ruling out loan players but says the market is slow as clubs assess their squads over pre-season.

Crewe Alexandra manager Alex Morris says that he would welcome the arrival of good loan players from clubs higher up the football pyramid, but he admits that he will have to be patient as those clubs asses their needs and progress through a demanding pre-season before deciding who could be available for loan.

The Crewe boss has already bought four new permanent signings and it is evident that he would like at least another couple more in key positions ahead of the new season. The loan market has to be another considered option.

Morris told the club’s official website: “It is not easy, in fact it is really difficult because clubs haven’t started pre-season training yet or finalised their squads. There is sure to be a lot more movement yet and at this time you have to be patient and wait for what could become available.

“Clubs want the players to report back and usually do three, four weeks of pre-season before they decide what they may or may do with those who might not get as much game time.

“It was important to do our permanent transfers first because that is the case in the summer window. The Premier League and Championship clubs, where you do explore the loan market, don’t want commit to their younger players coming out until they have had a look at them themselves in the pre-season.

“If loans do get done it is more likely to happen later on, which is not ideal before you would want them with you as early as possible, but it doesn’t play out like that when it comes to loans because there are a lot more factors involved in that.”