Manager Steven Pressley admits he needs to create “a level of culture” at Carlisle United quickly.

The Blues are in a transitional summer, having so far brought in three defenders but still with only 11 players signed up for the 2019/20 season.

Scot Pressley says it’s an exciting summer at Brunton Park but highlighted the way Dean Smith - now with Aston Villa and set to face Derby in the Championship play-off final today - took Walsall from the bottom of League One in 2011 to the 2015 Johnstone’s Paint Trophy final, before he left for Brentford a year later, as a model he wanted to follow.

Asked if he felt he was working from almost a blank piece of paper this summer, the 45-year-old former Falkirk, Coventry and Fleetwood boss said: “I think I am.

“In some ways, it’s a great opportunity. But in other ways, when you have been in a club for a period of time, one of the things you do try to build is a level of culture.

“When I look back at the Walsall success stories under Dean Smith, it took a number of years to see that success and, in pre-season, there was only two or three changes because the culture was there within the club.

“Then, the new players that came in immediately integrated into that culture. So although in many respects, there are some positives from it, we are going to have to re-create the culture very quickly and that’s something we are going to have to work on.”

Two of Pressley’s first three recruits, Jack Iredale and Christie Elliott, have come from north of the border while Jon Mellish is set to link up with United from financially-hit Gateshead, who have been suspended from the National League.

Pressley has not ruled out signing more players from Scotland and said: “I think Carlisle gives them a great opportunity.

“It’s also a really good club for the bigger guns in Scotland to lend several of their loan players to because they like them to go to England, they think it’s a very good grounding for them, and we are the closest club to them in the Football League which allows them to be able to watch them, certainly in the home games. So, there are positives.

“There are many Scottish players whose ambition is to come to England so coming to Carlisle, if you come here, it can be the first step in a possible ladder. You are coming here, desperate to do well, so that you can move on again to bigger and better things.

“That happens with players. It’s a good sign for us because they [want to] perform very well at this club but we understand younger players have ambition.”