Paul Cook on incomings and outgoings ahead of transfer deadline day

Five new additions have come in, although one of those, Kyle McFadzean, has suffered a knee injury and is going to be out for a lengthy period, which Cook has described as a ‘hammer blow.’

We understand that a winger is set to sign on loan from a Premier League club today, if everything goes to plan. The transfer window closes at 11pm on Monday and then clubs must submit their final squad lists to the Football League which will take them through to the end of the season.

Cook said: “We are always looking at other clubs’ squads, who is on the fringes, who is getting minutes, no different from our own. The biggest thing now is, can we bring in players who make us better. We are always actively looking to sign players.

"Obviously losing Dilan Markanday and James Berry, and with Will Grigg out of your team, that is taking a lot of goals out of anybody’s football team. At the other end of the pitch, to lose Dev Tanton, Chey Dunkley, Harvey Araujo and Lewis Gordon, that is taking your back four out of the team. As you can imagine, it has been tough on the players and supporters, but I feel we have come through it together.”

Last week Cook spoke about players also having to leave, and since then Bailey Hobson and Kane Drummond have been left out of the last two matchday squads. Both Hobson and Drummond have been out on loan earlier in the season in the National League before being recalled due to the injury crisis. The transfer deadline in the National League is not until March so a move could still be on the cards for them later down the line.

“We have gone from no players to too many,” Cook said. “Players must leave now. I am doing my best to help them leave. We don’t have a situation at our clubs where lads don’t know what is going on. Our lads get spoken to on a daily basis, good and bad.”