Boss Roy Keane says he needs to add one more loan player to his squad having signed Sunderland’s Jack Colback for a second time at the end of last week. The 20-year-old looks set to make his second Town debut in Tuesday’s game at Watford.

Speaking after Saturday’s defeat to Coventry, Keane said he was pleased to have completed the midfielder’s signing: “We’re glad to get Jack, we’ve been trying to sort it out for a week. We were never in a mad rush for Saturday, we weren’t going to force it because Jack had a few things to sort out and one or two other options.

“He’ll be training with us on Sunday and he’s coming here to play games. He’ll come into the squad on Tuesday and we’ll see how the players respond over the next couple of days.

“I’m pleased with Jack, but we still probably need one more. Jack’s a good lad and it helps that he knows the club. The fans will be pleased and I know the staff and myself are pleased to have him in the door and I’m sure the players will be as well because he can play in a number of positions."

Colback had offers from a number of other Championship clubs but Keane says he was always hopeful that last season's Players' Player of the Year would opt for a return to Portman Road: “Jack had a few things to weigh up but I was always quietly confident that he would come here.”

Keane refused to blame his use of a single central striker for Saturday's defeat: “The two goals we conceded were set pieces, the penalty and the corner.

“We’ll look at the way we set up, but I think it’s always an easy excuse for a manager to say ‘I got it wrong, we should have played him’. I thought the players who started the game were good enough to get something out of it.

“I was pleased to go in 1-0 at half-time. I thought we couldn’t have got any worse, and we weren’t, but then we gave the penalty away.

“If we keep a clean sheet in the second half, we’re confident we can get one goal. I don’t think we’re a team capable of scoring three or four goals, but we can certainly score one at home. The penalty was a really bad goal to give away.”

The Blues boss felt Gareth McAuley went to ground too readily: “You’re always telling your defenders to stay on their feet, as soon as you go off your feet there’s trouble.

“We’ve had it before, the first couple of QPR goals came from players going off their feet. Stay on your feet, it’s not all about being a hero and diving in, you’ve got to use your brain. But we move on, we’ve got another tough game on Tuesday.”

Keane admitted his side again made too little of their set pieces against the Sky Blues: “Whether we can give them credit for it or their goalkeeper, we were a bit predictable. We don’t want our players to be robotic, we do drills with them, but if they see something we tell them to go and do it.

“Set pieces are massive in the Championship and we were not good enough in terms of defending and also going forward.”

Overall, Keane felt his team might have grabbed a point from the game: “As a manager you’ve got to take your medicine. They beat us 2-1 but I still think there was enough in it for us to get something out of it. But ifs and ands are no good to you, you’ve got to go and do the business.

“We’ve had games earlier in the season where I don’t think we’ve played particularly well, not had that much possession and won. It is all about putting the ball in the back of the net, one way or another. Set pieces or otherwise a goal’s a goal."

Photo: Action Images

jpbrooks1 added 09:42 - Oct 18 Agreed they were 2 poor goals to concede and we must defend set pieces better ,BUT, it would have been irrelevant had we had a better balance (ie more than 1 lone striker) and used our home advantage to score 3 goals. The object of the game is to score more goals than the opposition, no matter how many, not just win games 1-0. Not only are 1-0 matches frustrating, they are usually boring. Look at the attendance for Saturday.

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devontractorboy added 10:04 - Oct 18 What a load of negative clap trap from Keane, no wonder the team are going out there without confidence and with fear, come on Roy lets be more positive and get our team going forward, defenders and keepers will always make mistakes, look at the Mau Utd team on Saturday! If we can score one more goal than the opposition then we win (Simples), lets have a bit more ambition and less of the 1 striker up front at home, it must give the opposition a boost to see a lone striker!

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Liverpool_blu added 10:18 - Oct 18 The loan Player has gotta be a proven goalscorer.. but who. IS Macheda from Man U worth a loan Spell.
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foster added 10:21 - Oct 18 lets hope its a stricker that will score some goals and lets play to up front against watford 1-3 to the town
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foster added 10:25 - Oct 18 norris should have played sat and so should have wickham lets go for the win against watford and not a draw
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SouperJim added 10:44 - Oct 18 "I don't think we're a team capable of scoring three or four goals, but we can certainly score one at home.". Could Keane be any more negative? What kind of a message does this send to the players? He lines us up so defensively, yet we still conceed two poor goals. Some times the best form of defence is attack Roy. Away sides at Portman Road probably can't believe their luck at the moment, playing a home team that choose the away end when they win the toss, play one up front and show very little real commitment to get forward, with a manager who claims we're incapable of scoring more than one goal at home! Why doesn't the bench just wave the white flag right from the off and be done with it!

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BlooooCD added 10:49 - Oct 18 Must be a striker surely?!?!?!?! We have our weaknesses on the pitch as do other teams (corners, free-kicks, defending set pieces etc.) but our inability to score can come back and bite us on the ass HARD at the end of the season! This league is so close and goal difference at the end of a campaign could haunt us... Come on Keano!
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naa added 11:02 - Oct 18 Must admit I felt strangely about this game. The first half was awful, agreed, but even then it was nice to see us not resorting to hoofing it to a 5'7" striker all the time. Second half was much improved, we attacked, we had two up front and we actually played some football. We deserved a point at least, shame about the two soft goals we conceded. But those saying we are boring and defensive are quite right. One up front at home is a disgrace and the lack of energy in the first half was shocking. It's all very well saying how we've improved defensively, but that has been at the expense of both attractive football and attacking play and that shouldn't have to be the case.

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itfc1981 added 11:04 - Oct 18 we really need a creative midfielder above all else
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gibbo added 11:08 - Oct 18 Was he watching a different game on Saturday then, in the first half Scotland played to far forward and was always in a offside position so we could not release the ball, if he had the ball there was nobody in the middle. Our set pieces are a joke, every throw went straight to their keeper, our corners don't attack the goal.
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ChambersM added 11:38 - Oct 18 'I don't think we're a team capable of scoring three or four goals, but we can certainly score one at home' Bit embarrassing that isn't it. And Mcauley didn't go to ground. Pratt.
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svendust added 12:05 - Oct 18 Good point made by SouperJim, why the hell do we choose to attack North Stand first half, we all know it's an advantage to be attacking the noisy end in the dying moments, the support builds momentum and draws the ball into the net. Plus I paid considerably more to sit in the North Stand and experience the end of game drama, bit of a p*** take to then turn it round. Tactics were all wrong from Keane and I expected him to admit it but he seems to believe 451 should have worked, even though we've all seen that at home 442 is best suited!

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whoppit added 12:16 - Oct 18 We are heading downwards in the table and I cannot see us really challenging for a play off spot, never mind automatic promotion. I blame Keane. This meathead of a man obviously cannot inspire his players and even sends them out with a defensive 4-5-1. Let's sack Keane before it gets any worse. The new man will be able to salvage something out of this season if Marcus acts now.

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ChambersM added 12:18 - Oct 18 'I don't think we're a team capable of scoring three or four goals, but we can certainly score one at home' Bit embarrassing that isn't it. And Mcauley didn't go to ground. Pratt.
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Keaneish added 12:23 - Oct 18 '...no wonder the team are going out there without confidence and with fear...' What are you on about down there in Devon DevonTractorBoy? You're not rehashing that old 'Keaner is a scary monster' rubbish again surely? Agreed, 2 up front at home though, end of.
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Bluetone added 12:27 - Oct 18 'I don't think we're a team capable of scoring three or four goals, but we can certainly score one at home' I find that a very worrying mindset for a manager allegedly aiming for promotion.
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alfromcol added 12:59 - Oct 18 "I don't think we're a team capable of scoring three or four goals, but we can certainly score one at home. " Not very encouraging and certainly won't help to get more bodies through the turnstiles. Everyone is crying out for 2 up front at the start, at least for home matches. Perhaps if RK sat in the stand he would have a better idea of what is going on on the pitch. I can't for the life of me see how a manager can see what is going on watching from pitch level.

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sereneblue added 13:02 - Oct 18 Keane's a good man and a good manager. But. Playing one up front at home = Were not confident.Come at us. Set plays are predicable. Why does every supporter see these things and Roy doesn't?
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bluelady added 13:05 - Oct 18 ChambersM agree with you about big Mac, Keane was scathing about him and when i saw the reply on TV basically it was a very soft penalty and both fell over each others feet...... Saw Mac yesterday with a rather large black eye - must have been that elbow at the end that the ref missed?
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runaround added 13:07 - Oct 18 I think the 451 formation is good away but for home games it wont work until we're ahead, which is unlikely with a defensive approach. I just hope RK realises this! As for another loanee, on past expierience it will be a keeper or battling midfielder
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hype313 added 13:15 - Oct 18 Whoppit - You are a prize troll "Let's sack Keane before it gets any worse. The new man will be able to salvage something out of this season if Marcus acts now. " Sorry I didn't realise we are in a relegation scrap? I thought we were in the top 6. Prat.
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yorkshire added 13:18 - Oct 18 WTF Reading this board can be depressing at the best of times with some of the negative idiots - ChambersM et al - but really - have I just read that we should sack Keane ? FFS people like this should not be allowed to support a football team - we are sixth in the table - have a team that is begining to find its feet and includes a nice amount of home gorwn players and yet people think the best thing to do is sack the manager - I give up !!!

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Help added 13:21 - Oct 18 RK you are starting to make the same mistakes as your predecessor. Poor formations, bad substitutions. If it is not a striker, and another midfielder you might as well say goodbye.
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Surco72 added 13:21 - Oct 18 Mac has made a lot less mistakes than you Roy this season . We will always struggle to score hoofing the ball in the air to a lone small striker who likes it on the floor and with our top scoring midfielder sat on the bench !! Too all those moaning about a 20 goal striker i would say in Scotland we have one the trouble is still our tactics and goals from elsewhere like a lot of us were saying last season .Sinclair wide midfielder socring goals for fun , Whittingham scores a lot of goals and can take set pieces why didnt we go for these players ? Drop Leadbitter at least it will give someone else a chance to take the set pieces

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jas0999 added 13:24 - Oct 18 A striker please.
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