Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has admitted that he will look to rotate his squad during a busy period of matches in the league and cup competitions.
The Potters travel to face high-flying Leicester City on Saturday in the first of four consecutive away games in the space of just 11 days.
Hughes revealed that Xherdan Shaqiri, who has recently been sidelined by a hamstring injury, is close to making his return, but also expressed concerns over the fitness of Marko Arnautovic and Geoff Cameron.
"We have a big period coming up. After the festive period there is usually a little bit of a lull, but it is still continuing for us and there are huge games to come. So we are going to need the squad. But you have to take each game as it comes," Hughes told reporters.
"Shaqiri trained today, so we're hopeful he won't get a reaction and then I'll make a decision as to whether he's ready. Obviously he's anxious to get back in. Marko has a slight hamstring problem that we are managing, but we have to be careful with that. We have this big period coming up, so we'll have to see.
"He has trained. There's a little bit of an issue there, but he has carried it for a number of weeks and still played, so he should be okay. Geoff still has an issue with his ankle and we are trying to resolve that, but it is not progressing too quickly, so we'll need to investigate that further."
After their trip to the King Power Stadium, Stoke face away games against Liverpool, Crystal Palace and Manchester United in three different competitions.
Barney Corkhill
