CHARLTON manager Phil Parkinson had plenty of positives to take from their 1-0 friendly defeat at Watford – but nonetheless hopes to add at least another four players to the squad.

Danny Graham’s early tap-in after Rob Elliot had parried Marvin Sordell’s initial effort after just eight minutes, but the Addicks spent the remainder of the game forcing some last-ditch defending out of Malky Mackay’s men in search of an equaliser that never came.

And Parky was upbeat after the game despite the result, saying: “I’m pleased with today.

“I felt last week at Barnet wasn’t very good practise for going into league football, it was a very slow game.

“But today there was a good tempo and both sides realised there’s a week to go before the season starts and upped the ante if you like.

“It was a very competitive game and I was very pleased with the way we played - we lost the game but we had plenty of attempts on goal and if we play like that and create as much as we did today then we’ll give ourselves a great chance to win football matches.”

Charlton again fielded a trialists at Vicarage Road, with Guliaume Norbert and Guilliem Bauza coming off the bench in the second half.

And with the League One season beginning in just seven days, Parkinson revealed that a decision on who will be offered a deal is to come shortly.

He explained: “We’re close and when the time comes to make those decisions then we’ll let everyone know.

“I’ve been quite clear with the numbers we need and we’ll probably need another four.

“Whether we can get them before Saturday is another matter but our chairman Richard Murray has been working extremely hard to assist me to do the deals that I want.

“We know who we’d like to bring in and they take a while to get over the finishing line but all the lads we’ve brought in we’re pleased with and will probably add a bit more quality to our squad.

“It’s been a frustrating summer but gradually as we get towards the season I can see this squad evolving in terms of playing together as a team which gets better as we go along.

“There’s going to be a lot of new faces in the starting eleven next Saturday but there’s some good characters and I’m really pleased with the additions we’ve made so far.”

One man who will definitely feature for the Addicks in 2010/11 is ex-Sheffield United winger Kyel Reid, who signed a deal earlier this month after featuring on loan last season.

Reid entered a man-of-the-match showing and was unfortunate not to have scored or created a goal for the visitors, but Parky envisions big things from the West Ham Academy graduate this season.

He said: “Reidy is fitter now than he’s probably been in his career and we’re going to give him the platform to go and play.

“When we get on the ball he’s a massive threat and he gave the young right-back who I know Watford rate very highly a torrid time.”

Parkinson went on to echo his Academy coach Damian Matthew’s praise of youngster Yado Mambo from earlier in the week, after Mambo impressed out of position at right back in the second period.

He added: “If you asked me which of the young players has had the best pre-season I’d say it’s got to be Yado.

“He’s a colossal lad in terms of his physical presence but he’s also a really good character who wants to win and wants to throw his body in front of things to protect the goal.

“But he’s also come back more athletic this season and if we’re away from home and need someone in that right-back slot for a big back four to defend set plays at the back end of the game then I can’t think of many better players than Yado Mambo.”

And after Charlton signed two new players yesterday, paying their first transfer fees in over eighteen months, Polish forward Pawel Abbott appeared for just over half an hour while ex-Southend defender Simon Francis isn’t quite match-fit to appear yet.

Of Francis, Parky said: “We’ll look at Simon on Monday. He trained this morning back at the training ground but we’ve got to be careful with him because the temptation is to throw him in today and if he gets injured then it’s a bad decision.

“He’s been running back at Southend but he hasn’t done any ball work so he’s a player way behind but Simon Francis is a Charlton player for the long term and we know that if he misses a bit of football at the start then we can take that.”

Charlton: Elliot, Solly (Mambo 63), Jackson, Dailly, Doherty (Llera 46), Wagstaff (Norbert 71), Semedo (Abbott 54), McCormack, Racon, Reid, Sodje (Bauza 63). Subs not used: Marshall, Stavrinou. Att: 2,097.