Boothroyd ready to add to Cobblers squad

Cobblers have yet to keep a clean sheet this season, shipping eight goals in five games and winning just once in all competitions so far this season.

With captain and last season’s player of the year Kelvin Langmead missing, Town have struggled to strike the right balance in defence.

And Boothroyd admits he could turn to the transfer market in a bid to improve his team.

He said: “I think we have got the players already in the club, I think they’ve proved that, but we may need a little bit of new blood.

“We may need somebody to come in and toughen us up a little bit because every team has got to have that balance of strength and of flair players, your soldiers and your artists. We haven’t got the balance right yet.

“I remember the start of last season when we tried to get Clarke Carlisle, couldn’t get him and we ended up with players, not being disrespectful, but young players like Henoc Mukendi, Danny East, Kemar Roofe. They came in because we thought they could improve us.

“But I think we’ve got a lot of players going forward, but as a team defensively that’s an area we need to be much, much stronger in.”

And Boothroyd believes he has plenty of options as he looks to add to his squad, with players scrambling for deals before the transfer window closes at midnight next Monday.

“It is difficult, but we’re in a position where the clubs are in a stronger position than a lot of the players right now because there are a lot of good players who haven’t got contracts,” he said.

“I’ve got to do the right business for the club and at the same time make sure that players who are not going to be part of our plans, I’m working hard to place them somewhere else.”

One player who will not be moving to Sixfields, though, is utility man Michael Spillane.

The defender, who can also play in midfield, played for the Cobblers in a friendly win against Leicester last month, but has now joined Cambrige United on a year-long deal.