Nigel Pearson has ruled Matty James and Kal Naismith out of the game with Preston on Wednesday and admits they remain doubts for the weekend visit of Millwall.
Naismith is currently sidelined with a calf injury picked up in the 0-0 draw with Coventry that forced him off the field five minutes before half-time. Last Thursday, Pearson admitted the injury is better than initially feared although he would be out of action for around 10 days.
James will also miss his fourth consecutive game having undergone a minor operation on his groin. The 31-year-old was last seen before the international break after playing 76 minutes in the 2-1 defeat at Burnley.
City have felt the absence of both players since the break as they go in search of their first win in six matches. Naismith in particular was a big loss on Saturday as Birmingham City's defence was breached on three occasions by set-pieces.
Speaking to Robins TV, Pearson said: "They won't be available midweek absolutely and it's still very debatable whether they'll be close at the weekend too.
"You have to remember when players have been out for any length of time they've got to get a base of pitch time too on the training field but we'll see.
"Whatever team is picked for any game what we have to have is that collective both spirit and application to go out and do the job. We've had that mostly this year I know we're in a difficult run but we still have enough to get out of that."
Andy King started in central defence against Birmingham after his impressive cameo in that role against Coventry but Pearson is likely to make a handful of changes to rectify City's defensive issues and that could mean a return to the starting line-up for Timm Klose.
The Swiss international hasn't started a league game this season but returned to the bench against Birmingham following knee issues and personal matters.
Further forward, City will welcome back Joe Williams from suspension after his one-match ban for accumulating five yellow cards. He'll be pushing for a start ahead of Han-Noah Massengo and Dylan Kadji with Alex Scott likely to keep his place in the side.
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