Wigan Athletic boss Roberto Martinez says he needs to buy to make up for a squad shortfall.
Marlon King was sacked by chairman Dave Whelan after receiving an 18-month jail sentence after being found guilty of sexually assaulting and causing actual bodily harm to a 20-year-old female student.
Although Scott Sinclair is on loan from Chelsea, it leaves Martinez with just Jason Scotland and Hugo Rodallega as his primary striking options.
"We lost one player [King] we didn't expect to lose and we sent out a player on loan as well [Ben Watson to QPR]," Martinez said.
"We're a little light in numbers and we need to bring in two or three players in the transfer window to give us the right balance to go into the second half of the campaign with full confidence.
"But we must have players with the right character, who are at the right moment in their careers, who can bring something different to what we already have. Importantly, with my focus on the players we have in the squad, the players coming in have to help them.
"I will never sign a player because it's the window and it's open, that's not the way I work."