Preston North End boss Alex Neil wants his squad to show their worth after a quiet end to the transfer window

Patrick Bauer was one of four signings made in the summer transfer window by Preston

Deadline day was a quiet one for the Lilywhites, with them limiting themselves to the four incoming deals made over the summer.

Fans were vocal on social media about that, with  concerns about quality and options in certain positions.

While the squad has the numbers, is that sufficient to get through to the January window and be challenging at the top end of the division?

Patrick Bauer, Andre Green, Tom Bayliss and David Nugent are the four new faces to have come in.

The worry among fans is the lack of left-back cover, whether another goalkeeper was needed bearing in mind PNE were on the lookout for one over the summer, so too the need for a goalscorer.

Tomorrow’s opponents Wigan were one of the busier clubs in the window and will be a decent gauge of strength of squad.

Neil said: “We have got what we have got. We need to get the best out of the lads who are here.

“A lot of them since I have been here have proven that they are good players and they need to show that again.

“I don’t want to talk about transfers and being stronger or not stronger.”

After a frustrating defeat at Millwall last week in which North End had plenty of the ball but little end product, Neil will be looking for more craft and purpose against Wigan.

Having come off the bench at The Den less than 48 hours after his arrival, Aston Villa loanee Green could be in line for a start tomorrow.

Bayliss will also come into contention, the midfielder not risked last week so soon after putting pen to paper on his move from Coventry.

Both new boys played in a bounce match against Salford in midweek, a game in which Nugent suffered a tight calf muscle which is set to rule him out tomorrow

Said Neil:“We’ve got a few players who operate in similar positions to some extent.

“It is getting the balance right between players who can run into space in the box and guys who are technical enough to make slide-rule passes to get us up the pitch.

“You look at the Millwall game and our general play was better than theirs but we didn’t create enough.”

In terms of selection, Neil says he could well be minded to make changes for Wigan.

“We had the bounce game and it was important to get people on the pitch,” said Neil.

“It was a good performance from the lads and positions are up for grabs for Wigan.

“We want to get points on the board quickly and not give ourselves an uphill struggle.”