Swindon Town manager Richie Wellens admits his side are facing problems up front ahead of Saturday's clash with Sunderland.
The Black Cats boast an impressive defensive record in their four League One games so far, conceding just one goal - and that from the penalty spot in their opening game.
While Phil Parkinson has injury concerns of his own - the long-term absences of Morgan Feeney and Arbenit Xhemajli mean he is struggling for defensive cover - he knows his first-choice backline has served him well.
Sunderland will be without the suspended Tom Flanagan at Swindon, while Denver Hume is an injury concern, but Robins boss Wellens has revealed they have issues up front and in midfield.
“We’re short in attack – we have one recognised out-and-out striker,” Wellens said, ahead of Saturday's showdown.
“Brett Pitman has pulled his groin, and he’s out for a month. I can’t see us bringing anyone in before the deadline.
“We’ve got a big enough squad to cope, though. Defensively, we are OK. In midfield we’re maybe a bit short, and certainly in attack.”
Wellens has various plans to deal with Sunderland's threats this weekend, but admits he may have to think on his feet.
“I like my plan A to work, but I’m not stupid. We don’t know the bad luck with injuries that we’re going to have in games," he added in an interview with the Swindon Advertiser.
“We’ve got a plan B and C, but we don’t have the personnel to implement it at the moment.
“For example, when we recently faced Peterborough – a very open side – we thought a back three/five would work best against them.
"But Zeki Fryers came off injured, we only had Jonathan Grounds on the bench, and we couldn’t go to the desired system. It can be very hard to deal with – but it’s my job to get the best out of what we’ve got.”
Sunderland face consecutive home games following the match at Swindon with Crewe (Tuesday, 7pm) and Portsmouth (Saturday, 3pm) up next for the Black Cats at the Stadium of Light,
