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Nottingham Forest will look to bolster their defensive options in January, says Mark Warburton - but the Reds boss says it is vital to add players who "are better than they have already got" above all else.

Warburton has identified several areas of the pitch where he wants to add quality and, while a lack of cutting edge in the final third was a key factor in a painful Boxing Day defeat against Sheffield Wednesday, the injury list within the defence is an issue the Forest manager believes also needs addressing as a matter of urgency.

Jack Hobbs, Matt Mills (both back), Tendayi Darikwa (ankle) and Danny Fox (knee) are all currently either injured or working on their match fitness after recovering from problems.

And with Forest continuing to concede a flurry of goals in the Championship it will be a key area that the club will look to strengthen when the window opens.

“You always look to add quality, if it becomes available,” said Warburton. “Everyone asks me ‘what positions are you looking for’. The important aspect is to find something that is better than we already have.

“If we find something that is better than we have already got, our job as manager and staff is to move for that deal if we possibly can.

“We do need to make a move into the market. You can see that we are very short in the back four.

(Image: Joseph Raynor)

"Again I was delighted with some of the contributions (against the Owls). But you can see again that we are one injury away from being in trouble.”

Warburton does not rule out adding a little additional firepower to his squad at the same time – but also believes that their search for a 20-goal-a-season striker could be resolved in house, within the squad they already possess.

But only if they allow the likes of Ben Brereton, Tyler Walker and Jason Cummings the opportunity to learn and evolve as players.

“You can’t just go out and buy a 20-goal-a-season striker, because everyone wants one of those,” said Warburton. “But that striker could be Tyler Walker or Ben Brereton or Jason Cummings.

“The only way they will get better is to expose them. They are not going to learn from the training pitch. They can hone their technique there and understand tactics.

“But they need to play in games. They need to play in these games and our job is to take the club as high as we possibly can this season – but also to get these boys bedded in, in games like this.

“That is the only way they will learn.”

Warburton did not gloss over Forest’s shortcomings against Wednesday – but believes they do have the attacking power to make the most of their chances, if they can create the same number of goalscoring opportunities against Sunderland this weekend.

(Image: Mark Fear)

“We have lost 3-0 and the fact is that we were very good in patches. I want you to report that in the right way – because we have to put the ball in the back of the net,” said Warburton. “I cannot say we were good, because we were beaten 3-0 at home.

“But put the ball in the back of the net early on. We had chance after chance. We had one-on-ones and big, big chances.

“I am never going to criticise an individual player, but that is the bottom line. We need to put away our chances when we create them.”

Warburton also reiterated his message that a few fringe players are likely to move on when the window opens.

“We are top heavy in some areas and there are players here who want to play football. I understand that completely,” he said.

“You always respect every individual at the club. You try to treat people fairly because what goes around comes around.”