As the Saddlers prepare for their season-ending clash with Milton Keynes Dons, first-team manager Jon Whitney has spoken to the local press and discussed his desire to retain some of his squad's loanees, George Dobson, Jason McCarthy, Eoghan O'Connell and Scott Laird, who will be returning to their parent clubs over the next week.
Speaking via the Express & Star, Jon said; "We will talk about my budget after MK Dons. When you look back to last summer, I haven’t got the massive rebuild I had.
"But I still need to add players. I’d like to keep some of the loan players but it’s not entirely up to me. George is still contracted to West Ham. Jason’s contract is up at Southampton. Eoghan is still a Celtic player. Lairdy is still at Scunthorpe.
"Even though I really want to push things, I can’t yet. Things will materialise, unravel and develop over the next four to six weeks. I would like to keep some of them. But I will make that clear after MK Dons, and and maybe discuss why others aren’t in my plans. They have to be a piece of the jigsaw and the plan we have for next year.
"We have to be better away from home for example. We have to be more robust and resilient. There are areas where we want to keep our flair but there are areas we need to have more resilience."