Brittain became Boro’s third signing of the summer when he joined from Blackburn at the start of this week and is available to make his debut in tomorrow’s Championship opener against Swansea City.
Boro’s recruitment team are working behind the scenes on several fronts, with a left wing-back and a striker both priorities in the coming weeks, and Edwards is 100% confident his squad will be further boosted ahead of the September 1 deadline.
The head coach is understandably reluctant to put a number on how many signings Boro want to make, but says the coaching and recruitment team are all “really clear on the plan”.
“There will be more,” promised Boro’s boss.
“The guys are working really hard behind the scenes. Obviously we’re here now and we’re focused on the game and doing the work at the training ground and on the grass. But there’s a lot of work going on behind the scenes to help us improve and strengthen.
“I think it’s dangerous to talk about a number [of potential signings]. But we’re quite clear on the areas we want to try and improve and add some more depth. That’s important. We’re really clear on the plan.”
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Middlesbrough were patient in their successful pursuit of Brittain, with the defender finally completing his move a month after Boro had first tabled a bid for the 27-year-old.
And that, says Edwards, highlights the importance of Boro being willing to play the long game to land top targets rather than panicking and turning to “stop-gap” signings.
“That’s something I want to try and stress and something I want to get across so fans understand the importance of patience to get the right players,” he said.
“We don’t want to bring in someone who might be a short term fix or stop-gap or not the right fit.
“We want to bring in the right person and someone who really wants to be here and someone who really improves us.
“Sometimes you have to wait a few more weeks to get the right one to land.
“I know it’s frustrating for everyone. It is for us as well because we want it here and now, but it can take a little bit of time.
“We have a good group and by the end of the window I think we’ll be in a stronger position.”
Throughout what has been a challenging summer, Edwards has stressed the need for calm and never panicked.
“The reality is things take time,” he says.
“There’s a lot of moving pieces with any kind of deal now, even if someone is a free transfer.
“It’s not that easy of course. I understand fans would want things done quickly. We would as well, everyone at the club would.
“Nobody here is any different, but we have to be a bit patient before we have that full group together.
“We all know what’s needed. It can be quite dynamic because there’s always change.
“But we’re all united and we know what we need. The guys are working really hard on that.”
While Boro’s focus is on incomings, there remains an element of uncertainty surrounding the future of Rav van den Berg and Hayden Hackney.
Hackney last week turned down the opportunity to join Ipswich Town and as things stand there are no offers on the table for the England Under-21 international.
“He’s here with us now and I’m focusing on that,” said Edwards.
“He’s been brilliant in training this week and he’s available for selection tomorrow. I’m really excited about that.”
As for van den Berg, FC Koln had a bid knocked back last week and while the Bundesliga club remain interested, there’s been no further offers for the defender as things stand.
Van den Berg missed the last three friendlies of the summer but is expected to be in the squad for Saturday’s Championship opener. And Edwards insists both Hackney and van den Berg have remained professional this summer, despite the ongoing speculation and uncertainty.
“They’re different people so you can’t group anyone the same,” he said.
“Everyone deals with things in their own way. They’ve been professional throughout.
“You see it right the way throughout the country at different levels, but they’ve dealt with things well.”
