Colchester United boss Danny Cowley admits team in ‘difficult moment’

“When you have the amount of injuries that we have in the attacking areas, it’s always going to be tough for us to find fluidity and find goals, but if you have that, then you have to keep the back door shut.”

Colchester have not finished higher than 15th in the last four seasons, one of the reasons Cowley and brother Nicky, his assistant, were appointed in January on two-and-a-half year deals.

They were only three points clear of the relegation places at the end of 2023-24 and have only won twice in 13 matches so far this term.

“We are pretty wafer thin at the moment with attacking options,” said Cowley.

“But we knew we’d need to freshen it up (against Salford) because for the third game in a week, they always get tired and you have to be prepared to impact it.”

Colchester now have a break from league action with Saturday’s FA Cup first round tie away to Swindon Town next on their agenda.

Cowley added: “We have to go away and we have to reflect and we all have to look at ourselves and see how we can contribute to helping the team.

“There’s no hiding place, we are in a difficult moment, we’ve lost some pace and athleticism at the top end of the pitch and sold a lot of athleticism in the summer, and that leaves you pretty short. That’s where we find ourselves at the minute.”