When Steve Evans was appointed as Grant McCann’s replacement at Peterborough United, less than 24 hours after resigning from his position as Mansfield boss, many expected Posh to push on and secure a top six finish, with a crack at the playoffs high on the agenda. Unfortunately, things didn’t go to plan for Peterborough or Evans, but they’re not hanging around ahead of the new campaign and have already started to make moves as they prepare for another promotion push.
Evans is being backed in the transfer market by Darragh MacAnthony and his new partners Jason Neale and Stewart Thompson; plus they have managed to seal a stunning seven new signings already, with more said to be in the pipeline. Rhys Bennett, Colin Daniel, Aaron Chapman, Mark O’Hara, Jason Naismith, Matt Godden and Alex Woodyard have all agreed to join, as Evans looks to reshape his squad ahead of what could be a very successful campaign. This optimistic view is already been taken by fans and pundits alike, on Betting.com and similar sport commentary sites.
Peterborough have already lost midfield starlet Leo da Silva Lopes to Wigan and it’s likely that both Marcus Maddison and Jack Marriott will be leaving the club this summer; but Posh will use the money coming into the club wisely. MacAnthony has already spoken about his desire to bring in three strikers for Steve Evans if Marriott is sold, with Matt Godden of Stevenage already a confirmed new arrival. So, regardless of who leaves the club this summer, Posh are expected to be one of the strongest outfits in the division.
You can certainly tell that Peterborough mean business once again with their desire to get the recruitment process started as early as possible. A rendezvous in America which saw Evans, MacAnthony, Neale, Thompson and director of football Barry Fry all get together to discuss plans for the 2018/19 campaign was quickly followed up by transfer activity beginning to take place, as they looked to steak a march on their rivals.
League One is set to be a tough division next season, with the likes of Sunderland, Charlton and Portsmouth expected to go well. Evans will fancy his chances of getting Posh promoted, especially as he’s a manager who knows what it takes to get out of League One having done so with Rotherham via the playoffs in 2013/14. He’s known as a serial promotion winner and you wouldn’t back against him adding another to his CV this season, with the club he calls his own.
As things stand both Maddison and Marriott remain at Posh, and MacAnthony has stressed to fans via social media that he is comfortable with that. Both players will only leave the club if the asking prices are met, and if they are, the money will probably go towards bringing in an extra few players to spear head Posh’s promotion push this season, which can’t be seen as a bad thing. You simply can’t write Evans and his Peterborough United side off, even against bigger sides in the league.
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