Blues boss Chris Beech says he will leave the door open as long as possible for Zach Clough to be involved for Carlisle United at Swindon.

The star summer signing has yet to make his debut after pulling out of last weekend’s Colchester game after the warm-up.

A hamstring injury kept Clough out of that game and Tuesday’s Carabao Cup trip to Sheffield United.

Beech said the ex-Bolton star was making progress back towards fitness but would be assessed before the squad boards the team coach for this weekend’s game in Wiltshire.

“He’s doing well and improving, so we’ll just have to wait and see where it is,” Beech said.

“With players like him there’s always a possibility of being involved – they know their body, they’re a little bit older and wiser, and they know how they feel.

“You always leave the opportunity open for players like Zach but I’ve got to make sure he’s right before we look into that.

“The door was open the previous weekend, but it was shut 10 minutes before kick-off. He’d trained three or four days prior to that game, so it was unfortunate it came back at that point.

“We’ll definitely leave it open and hope he can come back through the door that shut the previous weekend.”

Beech, meanwhile, said Danny Devine is getting closer to a return to action.

The midfielder has been out since pre-season with a muscle tear and will not be involved at the County Ground.

But United’s head coach said: “He’s doing great.

“It’s pretty strange to have someone like Danny injured through a strong tackle that opened up his knee joint, because he’s someone who is generally robust and he doesn’t pick up muscle injuries.

“He’s running, he’s increasing his pace, but I think he will miss the weekend. I’m not sure about Port Vale [next Tuesday] for him, but he should be getting going at some part next week.”

On the fitness of the squad he will take to Swindon, Beech said: “It’s not ideal having three away games on the bounce, but it is what it is. We'll prepare correctly for it, and the good news is that everybody is feeling ok from Tuesday’s game.

“The players who didn’t play will be freshened up and we’re in good shape to face a team that is already looking in good form.”