Millwall boss Gary Rowett has hinted he may need to add numbers to his side in the January transfer window after working with a depleted squad on the training ground this week.

The Lions are preparing for their South London derby match against Charlton on Saturday afternoon, but they have been hit by a series of injuries and illnesses this week which have meant there has been a smaller group of players in training.

Rowett is targeting his second consecutive home victory as Millwall boss following the success against Stoke in his first match, but he will be without the services of Frank Fielding, Ryan Leonard and Tom Elliott who are all injured.

Speaking to South London Press, the former Stoke boss has admitted he likes working with a compact group of players, but he conceded that it then sometimes becomes difficult to work on match situations with a limited squad size.

"What you do notice, coming in here, is that it is a very small squad," he said.

"Even with training this week we’ve had a couple of players ill and you’re down to 15 or 16 bodies – which makes it very difficult to do the matchplay stuff.

“That’s something we’ll have to look at. I know from a financial perspective we need to keep that fairly tight. And from a culture perspective it’s always nice to have a smaller squad, which I like also. But we are quite short of numbers when we have two or three injuries.”

Rowett was appointed as Millwall boss last month following the resignation of former boss Neil Harris, and Rowett has made a mixed start to life at the helm after following up the win over Stoke with a disappointing defeat against Reading.

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The Verdict

Rowett's comments make a lot of sense given the relatively small size of Millwall's squad, while it also seems likely he will want to sign some of his own players when the transfer window comes around.

The Millwall boss will be aware of the budget restraints he is under at the club, but he will be keen to put his own stamp on the squad when the opportunity arises, and this would also mean he can bolster the squad's numbers.

There have been some promising early signs during Rowett's reign so far, but the Charlton match will be an interesting test to see where this Lions side is at currently. Rowett will be hoping there are no further injuries to his side ahead of the meeting.