Walsall v Bradford City: Recruitment drive key for Bantams chief Stuart McCall

The Bantams chief has been desperate to bring in a replacement for Rory McArdle all summer but has had little luck.

Gordon Greer was identified as an early target and travelled with the squad to Austria for pre-season but the move collapsed amid concerns at board level over the 35-year-old’s fitness levels.

Others that McCall subsequently chased to no avail include Matty Pearson, who joined Barnsley from Accrington Stanley, and Leicester City’s Elliot Moore to leave the clock ticking for the Bantams ahead of Thursday’s transfer deadline.

“Sir Alex Ferguson always pointed to recruitment, man-management, leadership and luck as being key for any manager,” said McCall, who had a two-and-a-half year spell at Valley Parade until leaving early in 2010 and then returning again 14 months ago.

“He is right on all three counts, of course. But, for me, the biggest part of management is recruitment and nowadays I get a lot more help. In my first spell, it was basically doing it yourself.

“Agents would come to me direct and I would then have to check the players out.

“But, now, with Greg (Abbott, head of recruitment) on board, the workload is spread.

“Greg helps out a lot, as does Edin (Rahic, City vice-chairman). Recruitment is key and then, once the window closes, it is our job to get the best out of what we have.”