They have used fewer players — 27 — than most Championship teams this season and Christophe Berra believes the close-knit nature of manager Mick McCarthy’s squad to be one of Town’s biggest strengths.

Town have no ever-presents this season but central defender Berra and skipper Luke Chambers have both missed just one league game all season and 21-goal top scorer Daryl Murphy has only been absent twice.

Berra said: “It would be great to have a few more players but sometimes when you’ve got too big a squad it means some people aren’t going to be happy and that’s when the bad eggs start to appear within the group. We don’t have that.

“Everyone pulls together and, as you’ve seen recently, everyone has been involved and the players who have come into the side have done really well.

“It’s credit to the individuals themselves but also to the management team because it’s them who decide which players come into the squad.

“They have brought in people who are willing to work for the cause and it’s not about individuals, it’s about our team game.

“If it wasn’t for the team we wouldn’t be in the position we are right now. It’s a small changing room and we all get on well.

“We’ve got a good team spirit and if you looked at leagues throughout the world the teams at the top will be the same.

“Top teams might have one or two top individuals but their main strength is in the characters in the dressing room. It’s about the 18, 19 or 20 players who turn up in pre-season and are still there come May.”

Meanwhile, although manager McCarthy has led previous clubs Sunderland and Wolves from the Championship into the top flight, his approach to remain level-headed at all times is rubbing off on the playing staff.

Berra added: “To be honest he hasn’t really said anything. We’re footballers and we know the score, which means we’ve got to work hard.

“We turn up for training every day and it’s not any different now to what it was back in August.

“We just come in, train, prepare for the game and look at our opponents in more detail, to analyse their strengths and differences, the day before.

“Come three o’clock on Saturday we go out and do what we always do on a match day, try to win the game and get the three points.

“Before the games you are just concentrating on yourself and taking it a game at a time. After the games the telly will go on and it’s just natural that you look out for the other results.

“There are still 15 games to go but all we can do is concentrate on one at a time and try to get as many wins as possible.”

Photo: Action Images

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