Morgan Fox is rated 50-50 for Saturday lunchtime’s clash at Barnsley.
Fox, who inured an ankle at Wigan last month, has been training this week and Garry Monk says he will make a decision on the fitness of the player tomorrow.
Deadline day signings Connor Wickham and Josh Windass could be in line for their debuts, while Alessio Da Cruz will also be considered as a starter after making his first appearance as a second-half sub against Millwall last weekend.
Massimo Luongo is back in training after his groin strain and could make the squad while Kieran Lee has recovered from his shoulder problem.
With experienced players in Sam Hutchinson and Keiren Westwood not figuring in recent line-ups, Monk responded to a question about whether all players are still being considered for the matchday squads by saying: “Some are in better positions than others – that’s clear and that’s been communicated. That’s all I really need to say about it.
”Some are in much stronger positions than others and my job is to communicate that. I am not going to say what I have said to certain players.
“That is to be respectful and to respect the players themselves but I’ve been very clear on certain standings within the squad.
“My main focus is on the games ahead of me and the teams that will play and the squads that will be there to go and compete for those games.”