Norwich City head coach Philippe Clement indicated that Jack Stacey's hamstring injury will not be as bad as initially feared.
"It does not look long-term, but it is too early to put him in the game (against Watford). He is not training with the squad but we hope for some recovery over the next week.
"It means we need to be creative in those (full-back) and other positions. My work is to find solutions to play the same kind of football, whoever is playing.
"Whatever happens, players must know what job to do in their position and another so they can fill in - it is important in order to be successful."
The head coach revealed that Anis Ben Slimane has recovered from his quad injury and will return to the matchday squad for the first time since August's League Cup defeat to Southampton at Carrow Road.
The Belgian confirmed that none of the other currently injured players will be ready for the weekend's trip to Vicarage Road.
"Ben (Chrisene) trained for the first time with the group and felt good, but we need to be careful with Lucien (Mahovo) and build slowly with him.
Clement reflected on the QPR victory and particularly the performance of midfielder Pelle Mattsson:
"You need belief before that performance comes. I spoke with him about his past at his old team and what I didn't see yet from him here.
"He responded well - he showed previous quality here with energy, running and duels, but not with the ball. He will get better playing more and more games."
Speaking about the first chance to have a full week of training with the squad since joining the Canaries:
"I love working with players, to go into details on the pitch. We had a good physical load - some looked really tired, which we wanted. The engagement of the team was really good."
When asked about the early progress made since his arrival, the head coach was keen to temper expectations:
"It will not be a linear progression, but every time we play I want to see that stable foundation that we have built and other details become better.
"I need to get to know the players better. It is clearly positive that everybody has stepped into the story with everybody going to the maximum.
"Everybody has started with a white page and I don't have anything bad to say about anybody's application. I am looking for that hunger and desire to become better as individuals and as a team."
Earlier this week, the Canaries confirmed that Declan Rudd would become first-team goalkeeping coach, and Clement revealed the process of Rudd's promotion:
"Tony (Roberts) was leaving before I came so we were looking for solutions. Tony was really engaged in our two weeks together and helping, and he spoke highly of Declan.
"He (Rudd) knows the club and goalkeepers. We need to build a family and he knows what this club is about, which helps also to explain the history of the club to newer players."
This week, Clement spent time with majority shareholder Mark Attanasio and director Richard Ressler:
"It is crucial in modern football to have aligned owners and we are very motivated to bring this club to where we want it to be and I feel an important part of that.
"We're still assessing with the owners and with Ben (Knapper) to make this project as strong as possible. We will not only make changes to the project now, but in six months, or one year. We all share the same ambition.
"I feel also with the fans there is a lot of desire to get back to where we were before. All credit to them, even in Birmingham they were all there.
"We need to give something back and that is our aim. When the fans can see the players are doing everything to win the game, the synergie is there.
"My fuel is to see the happiness in the people that fill the place."