Doncaster Rovers v Tranmere: Grant McCann not getting 'blindsided' by talk of next season with a host of players out of contract plus an update on Hull City loanee

The number of players whose deals are due to expire at the club in the summer is into double figures, with Richard Wood, Luke Molyneux, Ben Close, Zian Westbrooke, Jon Taylor, Tommy Rowe, Harrison Biggins and James Maxwell among those whose contracts end, alongside with several loanees.

In the here and now, McCann is focusing on immediate business. Initially, it is getting some wins in double-quick time to prevent this season descending into an ugly relegation scrap.

Once that is hopefully achieved, it is all about providing some much-needed positivity for the club’s fans, who had done in tough in recent times.

On the contractual situation, McCann said: "Those sort of conversations happen all the time, but really our focus is on making sure we finish this season strongly.

"We don’t want to be blindsided by next season. We want to be focused on seeing how far we can finish up the division.

"That’s the only focus that myself, the staff and the players have, game by game.

"All those (other) conversations will be kept ‘in house’ between myself and my staff.

"We don’t publicly come out and say ‘A, B, C and D can go and whoever can stay.’ That will be kept inside the building."

Meanwhile, McCann has confirmed that Hull City loanee Tom Nixon has missed out on the club’s last two matchday squads due to selection issues, with the club’s squad options ensuring that some players have found themselves not picked.

He added: “Tom has just found himself not being selected just because of what we have used on the bench in the last couple of games.

"Tom is fit and is itching to be involved.

"It’s just getting players back to fitness and it’s nice to have those sort of dilemmas on a match-day where you are having to leave one or two out from the bench.

"We haven’t had that much this season.”