Alan Hardy: 'Notts County have already identified several transfer targets'

Alan Hardy has revealed how Notts County have already identified "three or four" January transfer targets and admits that Meadow Lane is proving a much sought after destination for players.

The Magpies' season is going from strength to strength with the club sitting top of League Two and in the second round of the FA Cup.

It's a far cry from previous seasons, which have tended to degenerate into relegation struggles, and Hardy says the difference in form and club infrastructure has led to much more interest from agents ahead of the new year.

In his weekly Nottingham Post column, the Notts owner wrote: "It’s no surprise to me the manager’s phone has been red hot with agents asking us if we would like to sign their clients. I think it underlines the amazing progress we have made.

"Our position in the league table has undoubtedly helped. People can see we are building something special here and want to be part of our journey.

"It’s a completely different scenario to what we experienced in the last January window, when we missed out on players because of our perilous league position.

"One player who slipped through our grasp is now playing for our league rivals Mansfield Town.

"Having been made aware of his availability, we were hoping to sign him before Mansfield picked up the phone late on.

"You cannot lay any blame at the player’s door because we were second from bottom.

"We had suffered 10 straight losses and could have been playing non-league football this season, whereas Mansfield were safe.

"I would like to think now, if he was making the same decision, he would choose us.

"That is a prime example of how your league position can affect a player who has a couple of clubs to choose from.

"But now, sitting top of the league, a position we hope to be in come the New Year, we have a great platform to see who is out there.

"We have already identified three or four we would like to bring in and, while it’s alright wanting them, it’s whether their clubs will let us have them."

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