Jim Magilton highlights transfer window frustrations but welcomes new eyes on Irish League
The Reds have had to deal with players moving on, European football, the final stages of the club takeover and player demands "going through the roof".
And while Magilton has been pleased with the deals the club have completed so far he admitted it has not been without its challenges this summer, and that's despite bringing a second trophy in as many years back to Solitude.
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"The last two years have helped us in terms of competitiveness," said Magilton. "We won an Irish Cup and finished third, we won a League Cup and lost an Irish Cup and won a play-off.
"And whilst players do their due diligence and they see all of that, you still have to meet their financial needs.
"That's difficult because at the moment we're still where we are. There's still a lot of talk about the takeover. It is in the last throes of completion, it's all with the solicitors and everything else.
"We'd like that to happen sooner rather than later, but we're on Cliftonville time and Cliftonville time is slightly different.
"Again we have to cut our cloth accordingly financially and make sure that we get the right people in and do our due diligence around who we bring, which is important.
"Between Gerard Little and myself, we probably receive 30 calls a day. And that started from the Sunday after the play-off game.
"And you go through that list and continue to go through the list until you narrow your list down. And then can you meet the financial needs, which have gone through the roof, they really have.
"But that means that there's more attention brought to the league, and anything that can profile the league and enhance the reputation of the league is great
"Unfortunately we couldn't get through round one in Europe, and that would have been the first time the four clubs got into round two.
"So, we let them down. But anything that can bring attention and, you know, that sort of focus is only a good thing.
"I saw David Jeffrey talking about the influx of players into the league. Well, as long as they've got the necessary quality, no doubt they have, then, again, that enhances the reputation too.
"The problem we had when we came back is that everyone's away on holiday. So, the English and Scottish clubs are enjoying it. But we're, you know, back in for pre-season on 16th June, and we're back focused on the European games.
"Our conversations with clubs don't really gather momentum until now when, obviously, they're taking stock of who's there and who's not and who's available and who's not.
"So, unless we have nailed on certainties and the ones that we did get in, we got in pretty quickly, which is good, but it's slower than I would love, but it is what it is."
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