Burnley boss Sean Dyche is unlikely to allow any of his fringe players leave the club on loan in January.
With a deeper squad than in previous years, several senior professionals have had very little first-team football, but Dyche remains mindful of the relatively small numbers at his disposal.
“We are not at this stage thinking of anyone going out because we carry a small squad,” he said.
“There are people that want football, of course, and if a situation arises where it is right for us then we try and be fair to the players where we can but equally the bigger picture is to perform in the Premier League and keep that going.
“We do need everyone, and recently has shown that with six key injuries as that is a lot for us to carry and that did stretch us to the bare minimum. It is a tricky balance to give people what they want and what we need.
“I am very open with the players here and they have been open with me when they are not playing and get frustrated. That is the way it goes but as well as being open they are also professional and they understand being in the Premier League.”
As to whether Burnley will bring in any new recruits, Dyche was non-committal.
“It is tough, I don’t know all the budgets yet,” he said. “You don’t know what is truly available.
“You can put names on a piece of paper but, when you get into the nuts and bolts of it and the phone calls start getting made, then sometimes that gets thrown out immediately. I think January is a particularly tough month.
“There is more thought into the ‘what ifs’ in-house in January. We’ve got this many players, what if we have a spate of injuries? How can we cover that? Is there anything we can do?
“What are the threats looking at us? If they’re looking at us, what can we search for if that happens? Eventually at this club, someone pays enough money so that player goes, so if that happens, are we ready for the next one in?
“That’s more the reality of our world. We’re often reactive not proactive. Being proactive takes a lot of money.”
One issue to be resolved is the future of Chelsea midfielder Danny Drinkwater, whose loan runs out on January 6.
The 29-year-old has only made two appearances for Burnley, either side of an ankle injury sustained in an incident outside a nightclub, but Dyche has consistently maintained no decision has yet been made on whether to try to extend his loan.
“I have had a chat with him today, he is looking fitter and sharper and we will wait and see,” said Dyche. “We will see if he can get himself a shirt and play well for us.”
Drinkwater could come into the thinking for Saturday’s trip to Bournemouth with Ashley Westwood again struggling with a groin problem and striker Chris Wood a doubt because of an Achilles issue.
Left-back Charlie Taylor has recovered from a minor hamstring problem and could return in place of Erik Pieters while winger Johann Berg Gudmundsson will play in an under-23 game this weekend as he builds up his fitness after more than two months out with a hamstring strain.
