Gareth Ainsworth reveals timeline for Shrewsbury Town incomings

Six players have left Shrewsbury so far this month. Three of the six players who made the Croud Meadow their temporary home in the summer have had their loan deals cut short.

Jordan Rossiter has joined Oldham, Joe Young has gone to National League North side Brackley Town, while Tom Bloxham was sold to Town's rivals Blackpool.

That has left Salop head coach Ainsworth light on numbers as Shrewsbury make the journey to the capital next weekend to take on Charlton.

Ainsworth was asked by the Shropshire Star about his squad depth and the boss confirmed he expects that to change over the next week.  

"We are hoping to maybe get a couple in this week," he said. "I want to try and bring some players in, just for the fact that the squad is a little bit thin.

"Especially numbers-wise. But hopefully, it might be people I may have worked with in the past, or know me as a person or know the systems I play that we can just add into the group.

"It's going to be tough with the numbers so low. But on the flip side, everybody can smell the first team. Everyone can sniff a chance of playing.

"Sometimes that's a really good thing in a football club.

"You don't want eight or nine in the stands chatting about the lads not doing well or hoping the team loses today because they are not in the squad.

"We have none of that here because we're a small squad, and I've got some great young kids coming through as well."

Salop produced a famous victory in League One on Thursday as they beat arch-rivals Wrexham 2-1 in the cross-border derby.

The win keeps their chances of staying in the third tier of English football alive with some difficult fixtures coming up at the end of this month.

"The future's looking good, but one step at a time. I'm telling the boys not to get so high, and I feel pretty high at the moment, so I've got to calm myself down. 

"But we'll definitely be back down to earth for next week against Charlton because they're one hell of a side as well, especially at home.

"There's some teams that are spending all sorts of money at the moment in the January window. We won't be able to do that, but we'll give it everything we've got, and hopefully, we can survive."