FIVE in, five out … it’s been a brisk transfer window at Valley Parade so far.

But Mark Hughes has declared himself satisfied with how the mid-season business is panning out.

Tolaji Bola’s arrival from Rotherham was followed by the sudden exit of Matty Foulds to Harrogate as Hughes continues to freshen up the dressing room.

The departures of Jake Young and Lee Angol were more expected and further outgoings are anticipated to trim a large squad.

Fans are waiting to see a central midfielder among the new faces still to come but Hughes is pleased with the progress at this stage.

“I’m not too far away,” he said. “We may have a couple more incomings and a couple more who may go out.

“Then we’ll look at our numbers and make sure we are covered for most eventualities and I’ll be quite happy.

“There are probably a couple more that need to go out rather than replicate the number coming in. But I’m happy with how it’s progressing.

“As I’ve said all along, it’s about being stronger at the end than we were at the beginning. We think we’re moving towards that situation.

“We’ve still got a couple of weeks left but it’s shaping up to be a decent window at the moment.”

Harrogate swooped quickly when it became aware Foulds would be available. Having snapped up Bola, Hughes felt it was only fair to let the left back move out to keep playing.

As with Young and Angol, it’s a situation he will address with others who have not featured regularly in his plans.

Hughes is wary of covering all bases with the approaching hectic workload but equally there are players who are desperate for games.

The likes of Luke Hendrie, Timi Odusina, Ryan East, Yann Songo’o and Levi Sutton have had limited opportunities this season.

Some of those may be lined up for the exit door by the end of the month.

The City boss added: “They’ve been patient and waited for their opportunity. For some it hasn’t come, for others it has.

“It’s a case that other people in the building maybe have pushed up into positions where they are closer to the first 11.

“The likes of Ciaran Kelly who is getting closer and we’ll look to get him involved in the second half of the season.

“People have just got to bide their time. But for those who feel they haven’t had opportunities, sometimes you’ve got to be right by them and allow them to go out and let other guys take over their roles at the club.

“That’s why I’m more accessible to it. I recognise it’s not easy being out of the team.

“You’ve got to be professional, come in and do your job and sometimes you haven’t got the end game, which is to play at the weekend. There’s no reward for the hard work you are putting in.

“If I can recognise that and allow them to go out and have a good second half of the season somewhere playing, it’s something I will consider.”