Blackpool fell to a narrow 2-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend, in what was a game between two sides in great form. 

Forest have turned a corner under Steve Cooper's guidance, whilst Blackpool have reacted excellently after a start full of struggle.

Neil Critchley has had to contend with having several first-team players out injured, but whilst speaking to the Blackpool Gazette, he does not want to use that as an excuse.

In what seems to be an ever-increasing absentee list, Dujon Sterling and Keshi Anderson became the latest players to miss out on the weekend, with Kevin Stewart being forced off during the contest.

Speaking to the Blackpool Gazette about the injury situation at the club, Critchley said: “We don’t ever use that as an excuse.

“We’ve got a good squad and we’ve done that (made changes) plenty of times last season.

“With the way we work and the way we coach the players, the other players come in and they know their jobs.

“I wasn’t looking at the team feeling we were disjointed or didn’t know what we were doing.

“The disappointment was our decision-making and our quality in the periods of the game where we needed it.

“I can never fault the players’ effort or their commitment, that was always there. The game became a bit stretched at the end but that was because we gave the ball away too much."

The verdict 

Blackpool are proving to be tough opposition, and it speaks a lot about their character when they are putting in decent performances with key personnel missing.

The Seasiders will be an exciting team to watch as the season progresses, as Critchley will start to see his players return.

It is a season where the ultimate objective will be surviving, but given their recent form of picking up 13 points from seven games, they might become more ambitious as the season goes on.

These are the weeks where having several first-teamers out can be quite difficult, as they play three times in a week, which at this rate demands a lot out of the ones that are fit.