Gareth Southgate is looking to strengthen his squad further this summer, but admits he may have to be patient.
Jeremie Aliadiere and Tuncay Sanli have already arrived at Middlesbrough since the end of last season, while Jonathan Woodgate has also completed a permanent move to The Riverside.
Southgate still wants his squad to have greater strength in depth, but concedes there is a possibility he may have to start the season with the squad as it is now.
"There is (a chance), and the squad is small, but I'm happy with the quality of the first team," he told the Evening Gazette.
"But at the moment our back-up is very inexperienced, and that's why we're hoping to strengthen the squad.
"We've got young players who played last year, but the more quality we can bring in, the better chance we have of finishing higher up the league."
Southgate is confident there are exciting times ahead at Boro but knows he will have to spend shrewdly.
"We're not awash with funds and we've got to make sure we get the right deals and the right players to improve us," he explained.
"We would still like to add a couple of players to the squad, but I'm delighted with what's gone on out here, both with the new players that have come in and the other lads.
"Yes, it's a team with possibly less experience than last season, but the upside of that is being able to work at a higher pace."
Boro lost 3-0 to Schalke in their first pre-season friendly on Saturday but Southgate was happy with the run-out.
He said: "I knew they were a couple of weeks ahead of us, they have a German Cup game next week, so it wasn't the first game we would ideally have liked but it was a good workout for us."
Boro are expected to field a stronger side in their next game against Hertha Berlin on Tuesday, with Aliadiere and Stewart Downing both set to feature.
Source : www.skysports.com
By Lewis Rutledge - Created on 16 Jul 2007
