Former England goalkeeper Chris Kirkland set for Bury debut against Charlton

Former England goalkeeper Chris Kirkland is among a host of new faces in the Bury squad ahead of their Sky Bet League One opener against Charlton at Gigg Lane.

The 35-year-old, once of Liverpool, joined after leaving Preston at the end of last season, while the Shakers have also signed another new keeper in Ben Williams.

Defender Leon Barnett, another new signing, may be short of match fitness but other potential debutants include Greg Leigh, Neil Danns, Anthony Kay, Niall Maher, Zeli Ismail and Nicky Clark.

Forward George Miller is set to miss the first six weeks of the season after suffering ankle ligament damage in training.

New Charlton manager Russell Slade will wait for developments from Lee Novak's assessment before selecting the team for his first competitive game in charge.

Charlton's squad has changed significantly, with Novak among their new arrivals, but a broken hand will rule him out unless it is determined he can play with a cast.

Patrick Bauer has returned to training but is short of match fitness so is unlikely to play. Alou Diarra has been ruled out for the coming two to three months because of a broken foot, while an Achilles injury means Ahmed Kashi remains out until at least October.

Harry Lennon is expected to return from a groin injury in the coming weeks but, beyond those absentees, Slade's options have been strengthened by the arrivals of new signings Declan Rudd and Jason Pearce, who are both in contention to start.