GRAHAM ALEXANDER has revealed that he could look to extend his Motherwell squad this season due to the demands of another gruelling fixture schedule.
The Steelmen are competing in the Europa Conference League and will also have to navigate their way through a backlog of matches due to the World Cup in November.
Alexander has already added Blair Spittal to his squad, and he told last week how he has been in contact with at least three other targets ahead of a return to pre-season.
The fixture pile-up due to the World Cup will be a new experience for all in the Premiership, but after managing through the Covid years, the Fir Park boss insists he will be ready for yet another hectic timetable.
Alexander explained: “Since Covid hit the seasons have been all over the place in terms of being halted and then restarted.
“Games were crammed in, even last Christmas matches were being put back because of Covid.
“This season we have the World Cup and no one in Europe will have experienced a break quite like this in November.
“I think in modern football, think of those international boys still playing, you have to be really adaptable.
“You have to deal with anything really. Gone are the days when you have a six week pre-season and a set campaign.
“Those breaks, those summer breaks, don’t exist anymore, the season is nearly a year long round.
“The fixtures get changed at the last minute and it’s really difficult to plan. You are almost planning to deal with anything that comes your way.
“You roll with the punches and Covid helped us all adapt to that way of thinking, there isn’t a ‘normality’ anymore. Everyone has to be ready for what’s thrown at them.
“The clubs and the leagues will help you prepare and at the end of the day we are playing football.
“It’s not as if we’re off to work down a pit for 20 hours and it’s not an enjoyable job. We’re doing something we all love, fortunate to be involved at such a high level.
“We have to look forward to whatever is thrown at us. But don’t ask me what things will look like come November and December because I don’t know.”
Motherwell will get their competitive season underway on July 21 when they take on either Bala Town or Sligo Rovers in a European double header.
The Scottish Premiership will then get underway on July 30 when Alexander's side take on St Mirren in Paisley.
The Steelmen will be looking for another top-half finish and asked whether the full-on fixture card will impact his summer recruitment, Alexander added: “When I got here there was an extremely big squad.
“We trimmed it down last summer, but I still felt it was too big. This season is different because of that break for the World Cup. You are only getting the group ready for 15-20 games before that break.
“That will give us time to assess whether we need to improve the squad. We had a few players on the fringes last season, some not even involved in the matchday squad.
“Players can become demotivated. There has to be a balance. But we won’t sign players just for the sake of it.
“Our players look after themselves really well and the sports science we have is good but it’s really more about the mental side of things."
