Keane content to hold off in market

Sunderland boss Roy Keane will not rush into action as he attempts to bolster his squad for the new season.

The Irishman learnt the hard way last summer how frustrating the transfer market can be, and is not prepared to spent his entire summer on the end of a telephone this time around.

Keane has made no secret of his intention to strengthen his resources during the close-season – Ian Harte, Stephen Wright, Andy Cole and Stanislav Varga have already been told their contracts will not be renewed and a series of young players have been released, and others are certain to follow.

However, while the decks have been cleared to a certain extent, the manager is convinced things will only gather pace once the Euro 2008 finals, which start this weekend, draw to a close.

Keane said: “A lot of players and a lot of clubs will be keeping their options open this summer, especially with the European Championships being played.

“You tend to find that very few deals are done early these days and when players have a platform like the European Championships, then they will be looking to perform.

“I have said all along that I won’t get carried away with pushing things in the first three or four weeks of the summer.

“If I could get people in, great, but I won’t get bogged down in ringing people here, there and everywhere because things don’t happen quickly.

“Players go away on holiday, managers go on holiday and it’s difficult to get things done.

“I have learnt that from what happened last year.”

Sunderland were the only one of the three promoted clubs to retain their place in the Barclays Premier League at the end of last season, although not without a struggle.

The Black Cats finally secured their top-flight status with 3-2 win over derby rivals Middlesbrough with two games to play, but Keane will not settle for a similar return next time around.

He said: “We got one or two decent results towards the end of the season, but I think that was probably papering over the cracks.

“I am trying to build a club, and my long-term plan for the club is that we want to play good football and are not involved in relegation battles.”

Keane has already hinted that he will hope to be able to invest around the same as the £44million he spent last season on new players, and has been linked with a series of targets including Manchester City defender Richard Dunne, Newcastle winger Damien Duff and Reading midfielder Steve Sidwell.

However, he insists he will have a proper break himself this summer after stretching himself to the limit in his pursuit of the men he wanted 12 months ago.

Keane told the Sunderland Echo: “One or two managers have told me to turn my phone off other than for one or two hours on an evening because you have to have a break.

“But as pre-season approaches, we all quickly start thinking about next season.”