STRIKER Chris Dagnall should be back in contention for this Wednesday's clash with Nottingham Forest.

The former Rochdale front man was unavailable for the weekend's loss at Cardiff City because of personal problems, but boss Ian Baraclough is confident Dagnall will be ready to face Forest.

"He had a personal blow that stopped him from travelling," the Iron manager explained.

"There was a possibility he could have come through on Saturday morning, but he wasn't in the right frame of mind so that didn't happen."

Dagnall's return would be a timely one for United, given that the impressive Joe Garner cannot play against his parent club as part of his loan arrangement.

Baraclough believes his new-look side are starting to gel at just the right time, with their performance against the Bluebirds much-improved, even if they ultimately did not pick up any points.

"We've always said, the longer the players could have together, they'd improve," he said.

"We've brought a lot of players in, but that was needed, you just need time to gel.

"You could see there was a cohesion and a willingness to work for each other. That will continue to improve as well."