Walsall's Adam Chambers won't be back until February

The 38-year-old, who is out of contract in the summer, broke the fourth metatarsal in his foot during the opening-day victory over Plymouth.

Chambers underwent an operation back in September to fix the problem and had been expected to return to action this month.

But manager Dean Keates said he now won’t be back until February.

“He’s had all his pins out and he is not far off from jogging again,” he said.

“We are looking at February, the end of February.”

Walsall take on Scunthorpe today looking to end a run that has seen them go six matches without a win.

And Keates believes his team will quickly move up the League One table if they cut out silly mistakes.

“Performance-wise we aren’t playing badly,” he said.

“We just aren’t making the right decisions at crucial times.

“For long periods at Charlton we were the better team. We have matched Luton, the form team of the division. It was effective.

“If we had performed at Bolton in the second half the way we did the first I think people would have perceived it differently.

“What stands out is the fact we conceded five in the second half.

“There were decent phases of play. We did well in parts. It is just those crucial decisions which are not good enough.”

Having conceded 17 goals in their last six games, Keates admits he has spoken to his players about keeping their heads up.

“It (confidence) is something we have spoken about, he continued.

“We showed the lads clips of the positives.

“There are areas of the pitch when we are playing really well.

“It is crucial we have to make better decisions in the defensive third.

“That goes for everyone, not just the goalkeeper and defence.

“We have to get back to where we were at the start of the season.

“You need a little bounce of the ball.

“At the beginning of the season we were getting in blocks and things were going wide, if we were under pressure.

“But you can’t harp on about luck. I believe the harder you work the luckier you will be.”