Crewe Alexandra manager Lee Bell has confirmed that the club will once again lean heavily on the loan market this summer as they prepare for another season in League Two. While the Alex narrowly missed out on a play-off spot following a defeat to MK Dons in their third-from-last game, Bell remains pragmatic about the squad-building process ahead.
“There’s not going to be an influx of players. The loan market, again, is going to be important to us,” Bell told BBC Radio Stoke. “That is going to be a fact. People know that and it’s worked out really well for us.”
Despite key absences—including on-loan striker Emre Tezgel missing large chunks of the campaign through injury—Bell kept Crewe in play-off contention until the final weeks. He’s already made clear he wants more depth in the squad next season, but knows temporary signings will be the primary route to achieving that.
Bell has discussed his preferred permanent targets with technical director Josh Kennard, who “will work on that to try and help us in that area.” Meanwhile, the futures of players whose contracts expire next month are being addressed. Bell plans to speak with them directly after the weekend.
“We’ve been having conversations for some time—the last couple of months,” Bell explained. “You’re not making decisions but you’re just trying to look at what it could look like. I’ll speak to them on Sunday. I think it’s important that you tell the players as soon as possible what their futures look like. They might tell us that their future lies somewhere else, I don’t know. But it’s important that we give them what we think we’re going to be doing moving forward as soon as possible. They’ve got their lives and families to consider as well.”
Crewe’s season concludes against automatic-promotion hopefuls Cambridge United, a match Bell says could have “massive consequences” for the U’s promotion chances. Cambridge could finish anywhere from second to fourth, with Salford and Notts County also in the mix for automatic promotion.
For Crewe, it’s about ending the season on a positive note and laying the groundwork for another competitive League Two campaign—one built, as ever, on smart loan moves and careful squad management.