'We're close to agreeing things' - Dominic Di Paola issues Horsham FC squad update ahead of 2023-24 campaign
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The Hornets are looking to build on a fabulous 2022-23 Isthmian Premier season that saw them record their highest-ever league position, points tally and number of goals scored.
Di Paola admitted it had been a ‘tough summer’ in terms of recruitment, but assured Horsham fans that the club would be making player announcements shortly.
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Hide AdHe said: “It’s been a bit quiet but we’ve got some players coming in. We’re close to agreeing things.
“It’s been a tough summer to get things nailed down. Everyone’s seen in our league that there’s been some big signings and big clubs going for it, but we’ve had to be a bit patient.
“We’ll be in a position on Saturday [July 1] where we’ll have a clear understanding of where we are with the squad.
“We’re not deliberately not announcing anything, it’s just the way it’s worked out. We’ve had a few boys in discussion and it’s gone round the houses a little bit, so we’ve taken the view that we’ll probably be announcing it in July.”
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Hide AdDi Paola did confirm that the core of last season’s squad will return to the Camping World Community Stadium for the new campaign.
The boss also said Horsham will have a few new faces arriving at the club in the closed-season, which will offset the departure of ‘one or two’ of last year’s team.
He added: “We’ve retained the majority of last year’s squad and we’ve got a few new boys coming in.
“There’s not going to be a huge change. There’s going to be some ins and out. It always ends up like that, but predominantly we’ve kept last year’s squad.
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Hide Ad“They’re a good group, they work hard for each other, we’ve just added in a few areas.
“One or two will not be coming back, but there’s always a bit of that in non-league.
“If we can keep what we’ve got and keep things fresh with some new players, then I’ll be pretty happy. I never like making signings anyway!
“If we get through the pre-season with what we’ve got injury-free, I’ll be happy.”
The Hornets’ pre-season kicks off at home to Metropolitan Police on Friday, July 14 (7.45pm kick-off).