LEEDS defender Michael Duberry could be one of the players Sam Allardyce turns to this summer as he plans for next season's assault on the Premiership.

Acknowledging that the majority of his current squad of defenders are all turned 30, the Reebok boss is looking for quality players to freshen up his back line.

And Duberry, the 26-year-old former Chelsea and England U21 international who is understood to be on his way out at Elland Road, fits the bill. But whether Wanderers have the financial clout to coax him to the Reebok is another matter.

Nevertheless, Duberry is an example of the type of player - still young but with top flight or international experience - Allardyce would like to recruit as he assembles a squad of defenders for the future.

What is certain is that the Wanderers boss is now focusing on the task of reshaping his squad. His first objective will be to decide on the futures of players who will be out of contract this summer - Gudni Bergsson, Paul Warhurst, Kevin Poole, Rod Wallace and Youri Djorkaeff - and Fredi Bobic, who is now back in Germany after completing his loan stint from Borussia Dortmund and Kostas Konstantinidis whose loan from Hertha Berlin is at an end. Then he will set about ploughing through the list of potential new recruits he has targeted after extensive scouting missions at home and abroad.

Allardyce is also due to have talks with contracted players who may be looking at pastures new, including Dean Holdsworth, Leam Richardson and Dean Holden, who is wanted by Oldham Athletic.

"We'll sort out the out-of-contract players, then the loan players then move on to the new additions to the squad for the start of next season," he confirmed.

"No decisions have been made yet on any of the players."

One name that does not appear to be on the summer transfer agenda is Michael Ricketts, who has been repeatedly touted for a close-season move but, according to Allardyce's repeated denials, is going nowhere.