ROY Hodgson aims to sign at least four new players, possibly as many as six, as he plans a summer spending spree for Blackburn Rovers.

And the Ewood boss, who admits he is going to need a bigger squad next season, would like to complete his buying before the squad report back for training in July.

Hodgson also confirmed that the targets he is lining up include players in England as well as abroad.

Before the transfer deadline, Rovers tried to sign Dion Dublin from Coventry and have continued to monitor his situation.

They have also kept an eye on Egil Ostenstad at Southampton and you would expect them to look closely at the relegated clubs to see if there are any players who could do a job at Ewood in the Premiership - Bolton's Alan Thompson for example.

Chris Armstrong, who seems unsettled at Tottenham, is another striker who could be on the market.

Abroad, France and Italy have been regular stopping-off points for Rovers' scouts but Lazio's Pierluigi Casiraghi has again verbally committed himself to Chelsea. Hodgson is determined to start spending soon.

"What has come out of the season's experience is that we are obviously under-strength at the moment in terms of our squad," he said.

"We need more quality players in case of injury, suspension or whatever.

"We've always actually known that but, at the same time, had we carried on like we were doing in the beginning we might just have been tempted into believing perhaps we have got enough.

"But the lack of recent results really just confirmed what we have always known. Maybe at the beginning we were over-achieving a little bit.

"We need more players because of the European programme.

"And because, basically, the players who have done a fantastic job to get us through this season on a very skeleton staff, also need to see some new faces - some top-liners coming in alongside them.

"It isn't a question of not having faith in the ones who have done the job, it's a question of getting some more top-line names to come and join Blackburn Rovers in order to strengthen our efforts.

"That's what it's about."

Hodgson has already stated he expects some fringe players to move on. But he added: "I don't think there will be any departures that we haven't bargained for. I don't think anybody we are counting on to stay will come and put a transfer request in.

"If we sign another four to six players as we are possibly looking to do, then some of the fringe players will have to go anyway.

"But that will be a secondary task. At the moment, to be quite honest, we are only concentrating on filling positions and getting in the extra bodies we need.

"We'll look into the problem of if we have got too many when we come to it.

"We are looking to get our transfer situation sorted out as quickly as possible, if possible before the first day of pre-season.

"But if there is still a position or two where we feel we could do with somebody but haven't found the right man, then we'll be patient and go and get him in the early part of the season."

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