1:08am Thursday 29th May 2008
By Marc Iles
ALAN Knill is set to make a proven League Two goalkeeper his first summer signing.
The Shakers boss was optimistic the new man was on board after meeting with him last week and promised fans more fresh faces were on their way.
Knill is keeping quiet about the new signing's identity, but any new arrival is likely to spell the end of his interest in Republic of Ireland Under-21 international Darren Randolph, who played 14 games on loan from Charlton Athletic at the end of last season. Randolph's agent had earlier indicated the 21-year-old wanted to play higher up the Football League pyramid. Knill said he was confident the new keeper would return from holiday and sign a deal at Gigg Lane.
"I have been all over the country over the last few weeks talking to players, and I have got some coming in," he said. "Things are looking good on a deal I did on Wednesday. He is a goalkeeper and hopefully we have the deal done. He has gone away to think about it but I am pretty confident he will come back with the right answer."
A midfielder is also believed to be mulling over an offer as the manager looks to build on his highly-successful start at the club.
"I don't want players that come in here and it appears to be a shock to them, so they should have had some experience at this level," he said. "I've spoken to two players that I have liked for a long time, and I've had some pretty positive feedback from them."
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