Town boss Joe Royle admits that although he is keen to add to his squad, no new signing is immediately on the cards. Royle has been after a defender on a season-long loan, while a wide man and a striker have also interested him over the summer.

Royle said: "There is nothing imminent and I can't just wave a magic wand to conjure up a new player. It is all a question of availability.

"Things are still the same as far as bringing in any new faces is concerned. There are two or three players I would like to take on loan, but it is a question of availability.

"I'm not going to identify them or even say where they play, because it just starts a guessing game with several names being bandied about.

"I will speak to people again to assess the situation and ask about availability, but beyond that there's nothing to add."

Royle revealed some weeks back that he was close to signing a defender with a Premiership club on a season-lon loan, prompting erroneous claims of interest in Southampton's Chris Baird, a player the Town manager has said on several occasions he didn't approach.

The player he targeted was Arsenal youngster Justin Hoyte, but Arsene Wenger's failure to bring in Ajax's Hatem Trabelsi as right-back cover stalled the deal. However, with the Gunners showing interest in Lazio's Massimo Oddo, the deal could soon be back on.

Royle took Mark Rivers on trial over the summer, indicating that he has the signing of a wide man in mind. Rivers showed little in his spell with the Blues and eventually moved back to former club Crewe where he has scored three goals in the first three games while playing as a striker.

Tony Dinning, primarily an attacking midfielder but able to play in a variety of roles, came in on a two-month loan last week and will hope to do enough to win a permanent deal.

The Town manager has said on a number of occasions that he would like to bring in a frontman who can hold the ball up better than the players currently in his squad. However, he may have to wait for the departure of either Pablo Couñago or Shefki Kuqi before he is able to do so.

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