Wigan Athletic boss provides injury updates on Chris Sze, Jonny Smith, Ollie Norburn, Baba Adeeko and Luke Chambers

Sze was a surprise absentee for the matchday squad for the midweek derby defeat to Bolton Wanderers.

And with Latics - the lowest scorers in League One - again drawing a blank, the new head coach knows he needs all the attacking options at his disposal.

"Chris banged his knee, it was in the Barnsley game, he had a graze...and we didn't think much of it," said Lowe. "But we've had a look at it and kept him back from the Bolton game as a precaution.

"Saturday might also come a little bit too soon for him, Tuesday might be more of a chance...and if not Tuesday then definitely the following Saturday. He's been like a real breath of fresh air since I've been here, and he's performed well while he's been on the field.

"But the physios have been checking him over and we need to make sure there's nothing else going on in there. There is a little bit of swelling and fluid on his knee, which is nothing bad, but we just need it to go down before he gets back involved."

He also provided an update on winger Jonny Smith and midfielder Ollie Norburn, who were both substituted during the second half against Bolton.

"Jonny's okay, he's trained, he just had a bit of cramp, because of the workload," said Lowe. "What he's been doing up and down as left-wing back has been phenomenal and it's had an effect.

"We had him scanned just to make sure to make sure it was checked. There was nothing there, which was a bonus, you have to do the right thing with muscle injuries."

On Norburn - who was arguably Latics' best player before leaving the field in the 79th minute - Lowe added: "Ollie's had an issue with his calf, so he's also gone away for a scan.

"Again, we need to take every precaution, in order to rule everything out. He was able to walk off the pitch so hopefully that's a sign that he's okay."

Latics were again without midfielder Baba Adeeko and left-back Luke Chambers against Bolton.

"Baba's been out on the grass, which is a bonus," he added. "We'll assess and see how he goes on Friday ahead of the weekend, while Chambo's been out on the grass as well, which is good."

Earlier this week, Lowe pledged to ‘get the bottom’ of the injury woe that has dogged Latics all season.

"We'll try and get to the bottom of it, because there's been a few of them (injuries) this season,” he said. “Obviously the main focus now is on picking up as many points as we can between now and the end of the season.

"But we will be looking at what the lads are doing, the training, the loading, because we've had too many injuries. And that's not down to the physios, or the fitness coaches, or the coaches. But we need to look at the lads, see what they've been doing, and how we can manage that better."