Now that the transfer market is open and teams can once again haggle, Exeter City manager Gary Caldwell is probably going to make some tweaks to his team instead of doing a complete overhaul this January.
It was a different tale last winter when the Grecians brought in five new players in an attempt to snap a three-month losing streak in League One, which ended on Boxing Day with a 1-0 success over Wycombe Wanderers at St James Park.
The Grecians signed Luke Harris on loan from Fulham as soon as the New Year chimes rang in 2024. They also added Ben Purrington and Millenic Alli as permanent additions, and Ryan Woods and Mo Eisa joined on loan for the rest of the season.
It is highly doubtful that another five signings will be added this January, but that is not to say the Grecians will not do business, although some of that will be sorting out the immediate futures of Caleb Watts, Mustapha Carayol and Kevin McDonald, who are all out of contract this month.
There are no updates at the minute, but we are speaking to players,” Caldwell said. “Obviously the window is open and we have got players who are out of contract in kind of mid-January, around about then. We will speak to the players and make a comment once we get things sorted and once that happens.”
Asked if there will be any new arrivals before the FA Cup tie with Oxford United on Saturday, Caldwell said: “Wait and see.”
Caldwell has already said publicly that the Grecians are keen to keep Watts, who has been in good form of late, while McDonald is another to have caught the eye since returning to St James Park, although he has not been involved since the 3-1 Boxing Day win over Bristol Rovers.
Big Kev had some personal things that he had to deal with back home, so we allowed him to go and do that,” Caldwell explained. “He had a close friend that passed away, so he had to go to a funeral, but he has come back and is back in training
We are just building him back up and hopefully he will be available again next week.”
Whether Carayol is kept on remains to be seen, but with Caldwell keen to bring one or two players in, then he may be sacrificed to free up funds to allow that to happen. At 36, Carayol’s best days are behind him and he has started only one league game for Exeter, with another five outings from the bench.
City are the 16th club of Carayol’s long and distinguished career, but he has also struggled with injury and not played since the 3-2 win at Bristol Rovers in the EFL Trophy on October 29.
There are rumours that Wycombe Wanderers are plotting a loan move for Frenchman Tristan Crama, who himself is on loan at the club from Brentford. The 23-year-old has had an outstanding season at the heart of the Grecians’ defence and scored four goals in 25 appearances so far this season, including one against the Chairboys on New Year’s Day.
Crama is seen by Wycombe as a replacement for Caleb Taylor, who was recalled from his loan spell at Adams Park by West Bromwich Albion.
There are also question marks over the loan of striker Amani Richards, who has played only six times since arriving from Leicester City and only two of those games from the start.
The 20-year-old also played for his parent club’s Under-21 side – Leicester City – in the EFL Trophy this season, which could mean he is unable to play for anyone else this season having reached the maximum of representing two clubs in any one season. It is unclear whether that rule applies to Under-21 teams, though.
City’s squad has been bolstered by the return from Cheick Diabate and Mitch Beardmore from loan spells at Bradford City and Plymouth Parkway – while Ed James was recalled from Yeovil Town after picking up an injury just before Christmas.
But a striker is sure to be high on Caldwell’s wish list with City having a huge reliance on their 34-year-old Northern Ireland international Josh Magennis this season. Fellow frontman Jay Bird has struggled for form, scoring twice in 16 appearances, while Sonny Cox has struggled for form and with injury and has not scored in his 16 outings this season.
One player the Grecians have been linked with is Cardiff City’s 20-year-old midfielder Joe Colwill, who has performed so well for League Two side Cheltenham Town this season, scoring nine goals in 28 appearances.
