Nathan Jones is expecting a stern test for his side this weekend as the Addicks welcome Preston North End to The Valley in the Sky Bet Championship (3pm BST.)
The gaffer was delighted by this week’s news that Tyreece Campbell had signed a new deal with the club, keeping him at SE7 until 2030.
"It was very important to tie TC down, because he is a brilliant player," he said.
"It was always a desire from both sides to do the deal, we just needed to make the agreement."
"It is important for us to improve and get better as a squad, but in doing so we have also have to retain players that we don’t want to lose. We are very happy that he has signed a new deal and the rest of the stuff will be ongoing."
"We are in a better position. We were exposed with those players going into the final year of their contract and we said to them if they continue the right development and they get the right interest, we do not want to stand in their way. I want all three to achieve the goal of playing in the Premier League."
"I would like that to be with Charlton but if they do that quicker than us then at no point will we stand in their way. We want them to be focused and settled and for us to build, and if as a by product of their progression they get their opportunities then I will welcome that problem and we will have to recruit again."
Wednesday night’s cup clash with Tottenham Hotspur proved a difficult one, with both Collins Sichenje and Billy Koumetio forced off through injury.
"Collins’ injury is a tough one, it was a significant injury," Jones said.
"Billy’s was a precautionary one. I didn’t want to play Billy, I wanted to play Reece Burke but he picked up a minor thing so I had to play Billy. Last year, we started fantastically well and we curtailed by certain injuries and I didn’t want that to happen this year. Reece is fine, it wasn’t anything significant. We kept him out of the Wednesday game and that had a knock on effect. The knock-on effect from Reece picking up a knock was quite catastrophic."
"It was a real tough game, it is getting more difficult now the gulf between Premier League sides and the Championship. Some of the best Championship sides that go up find it tough in the Premier League. We made 10 changes and they [Tottenham] had three, four hundred million pounds worth of players in the starting line-up. Then, the gulf is slightly bigger but it was a wonderful experience. The stadium was brilliant, the only bad thing was the injuries we picked up."
Charlie Kelman and Josh Edwards are both yet to feature in the 2026/27 campaign, as they both work their way back from injury.
"They have both trained with us today. It is just a matter of being safe," he explained.
"We have had to be really sort of careful and progressive with Josh [Edwards]. We don’t want him to peak and then dip. Charlie [Kelman] is flying, he just needs the all clear. Charlie’s injury didn’t stop him from training, it just stops him doing real contact. That is starting to evolve a bit and he is stepping up his training constantly."
Charlton host Preston North End at The Valley in the Sky Bet Championship on Saturday, with recent meetings between the sides having been decided by the finest of margins.
"It is going to be a battle," he said.
"Preston have been a Championship side for god knows how long now. They are a real good club, I know a lot of people there. We have let ourselves down with certain things when we have played them at their place recently and at home last season we should have had more out of the game. They are a good side with lots of experience. And they have signed well and spent a bit of money and strengthened."
Jones explained how the team’s transfer plans have changed direction late in the window following Sichenje’s injury.
"Our recruitment hasn’t changed in one position, it has been well documented and we want to add in that position. Because of Collins [Sichenje], we need to strengthen in that area as well."
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