PHIL Parkinson must feel that he's in a state of limbo with his plans for next season.

A lot will depend on the budget that he's got and I'm not sure he knows how much that is right now. That's the conundrum.

Obviously he has more this summer than last year after the FA Cup run.

But is there going to be a significant amount coming in from the takeover or not?

It's like having a cake and knowing how much you can slice off in terms of offering wages for players.

At this moment in time, we don't know how big that cake is – and how much he can offer to keep the likes of Jon Stead and Andrew Davies.

For me, Jon Stead was exceptional last year. He knew that his days at Huddersfield were numbered so he had to go out there and play for a new contract, whether that's at Bradford or elsewhere.

I'd like to think he would be keen to join because not only has he been good for Bradford but Bradford have been good for him as well.

That would be one of the priorities for Phil. If you take him and James Hanson out of the equation, you haven't got much back-up there as such.

Andrew is another one that I'm sure Phil wants. He's an old head and I think he's been great for the club.

Andrew is probably playing the best football of his career right now and I think he could play in the Championship comfortably.

All right, he might miss 20 games a season with injuries, but he's such a big player – and he's another one where Bradford has been good for him.

Once you know what's happening with these guys, then Phil can plough on. He'll know exactly where he stands financially and can start going down the list of potential new players he's got drawn up.

If that doesn't happen, he might have to go to a plan B. I'm sure Phil has got two lists just in case.

In an ideal world, he can spend what he wants on it but at the moment we're in that period of not knowing.

If Steady doesn't sign, he'll have to divert some money that way.

Then there's Aaron Mclean, who needs sorting. He's got another year on his contract to go – but is there any future for him at Valley Parade?

Let's find out his intentions now, rather than having to wait until July.

If I was manager, I'd want to sit down with the chairman and his agent and see what we can do – and what Aaron wants to do.

If they come to some kind of agreement, will that release money? Will they pay him off or is he going to stay?

Sometimes players call your bluff in that situation. They'll say one thing and then do the other.

You'll agree something and then two or three weeks on, there will be a call from the agent saying his client has had second thoughts.

Maybe Aaron enjoyed it so much being back at Peterborough that he now wants to move back down south.

He's been involved more in coaching than playing, so maybe he sees that as the route he wants to go down.

That's why I'd be pushing for that chat with his agent to find out what's the likelihood that we can do something which will suit everyone.

The manager's got to know so he can plan properly for the future and not waste his time – or the player's.

It hasn't worked out for Aaron as we hoped and he never got going last season. But if he doesn't move in the summer, he will be back in the building once again.

Who's to say he won't come back all guns blazing? Stranger things have happened.

People have come back before at clubs where they had been written off. However unlikely that may seem, you just never know.

If it was me, I'd try to get that sorted quickly so I know if I have to be looking for another striker or not.

The club need to know sooner rather than later and it's the same with Steady and Davies. Time is of the essence.

You'd think an early resolution suits the players too. From the point of view of their own security, they don't want to wait until pre-season.

They don't want to spend their summer holidays fretting about what they will be doing next year.

One good selling point for Phil is the number in the squad who are still under contract.

You look at what they did last season in the FA Cup and he can also point out that they finished only one position outside the play-offs.

There has been progress every year and you've got a club that keeps going in the right direction. Of course there will be people who want to come to Bradford.

Look at the players he attracted last summer – people he brought in like Billy Knott and Billy Clarke were better footballers than they had before.

Bradford City were a better footballing team because of that. Prior to that, the Capital One Cup side played a very much more direct way.

Okay, there were little things that you still need to tweak. Maybe the players were a bit naive sometimes and let the opposition off the hook in games they should have won.

But they need to put that down to experience and learning how to see matches through. The main thing is that players take that on board.

I certainly think Phil has more strings to his bow but it is how he can build on that which matters.

* John Hendrie, who is a consultant for LawBlacks.com, was talking to Simon Parker