An exasperated Slaven Bilic said he would be looking for “answers” after he saw another senior player limp off in the FA Cup defeat at Reading.

Midfielder Leandro Bacuna had only been on the pitch five minutes after coming on as a substitute at half-time when he fell to the ground clutching his upper leg when crossing the ball.

He limped off soon afterwards, and Bilic was clearly no longer happy to accept it was pure bad luck.

“I’m not a doctor or a physio but at the end of the day these things affect me the most, in terms of team selection. I want answers for this,” he said.

“Continually saying we are unlucky will not bring us anywhere.

“I don’t know what to say again. As far as I know the player was big time ready and needed minutes.

“Before he came to us he didn’t play a lot of football. He was getting minutes and then he had his best game against Norwich.

“This game came at an ideal time for him – give him 45 minutes to get more into it.

“For a player to then get injured after five minutes . . . it’s strange. It seems impossible and it feels unacceptable.

“It’s his hamstring. That’s four in two games. It’s crazy.”

Bilic was without 15 players for the game at Reading, the vast majority ruled out by injuries, three of which were all hamstring problems sustained during the league win at Norwich.

With the January transfer window open and a decimated squad, Bilic again stressed the importance of this month’s market activity.

“We have been saying this for the last few games now,” he said.

“No matter which league or team, in January every club is trying to maintain the same quality they had but also to add to it.

“We need to improve the quantity and also the quality. We can’t go on like this. That is why, in the position we are, this month is top priority.

“Some players will be back soon, but in some of the positions we have to be active in the transfer window.

“At the same time, it is also crucial that we stop the injuries. We have to train, we can’t walk on eggs. You have to find that balance.

“It’s not like I can put two or three players in a fridge or a freezer and then like in The Terminator movies just open it up and let them out.”