Boss Paul Lambert felt James Norwood and Troy Parrott worked well together as a front two during the first half of Tuesday’s 2-1 defeat at Peterborough.
Lambert says Norwood is being treated with kid gloves due to the hamstring problems which have hampered him over the last few months, the former Tranmere man having been withdrawn at half-time against Posh, after featuring for the last 20 minutes in the 2-0 victory against Blackpool last Saturday.
"That’s the danger with James at the minute because he’s had the two massive hamstring injuries,” he said.
"We hope he’s getting better every game, 45 minutes, an hour, 30 minutes is about right for him at the minute.
"We’ve got to really watch him and that’s why the 12 games in five weeks is a helluva lot of football for him to play.”
Norwood has made only five starts and nine sub appearances in all competitions this season but Tuesday’s opener at London Road was his third goal of the campaign.
"He can score goals, so he can,” Lambert reflected. "As I said before, it’s just the fitness thing that’s a little bit of a concern with him at this moment.
"But he’s doing alright, we can’t lose him again for another six or seven weeks, that’s too much.”
Troy Parrott has started both games since he joined on loan from Tottenham, playing 70 minutes against Blackpool last weekend and then the full 90 on Tuesday. Will the Irish international be able to start again on Saturday?
"He’s been brilliant for us,” Lambert enthused. "His link-up play and his touch is brilliant. He’s a top player and I think he’ll go on to really great things, the way he plays.
"He’s really clever, really intelligent, brings people into the game and he was unlucky with his chance the other day. We just need to monitor him at the minute, but he’s doing really well. No issues with him.”
He says Parrott, who is yet to score a senior goal, is an even better player than he thought he was prior to his signing: "Yes, absolutely, his awareness and his touch, a really, really clever player who could be a really top player if he keeps progressing the way he is.
"You’ve got to remember, he just turned 19 last week. I can see it because I’m a professional person in the game, I see things that maybe you guys [the media] might not see. What I see would be different to you, but he’s a top player.”
Regarding Norwood and Parrott playing together as a front two at Peterborough, he said: "They started brilliantly. We looked quite comfortable. But Peterborough had a little spell just before half-time when they got the goal. There was nothing in the game really.
"The two of them caused trouble, which I thought they needed to do and I think it was just going to go one way or the other, that game was a close call.”