Phil Parkinson will step up his bid to sign Paul Benson this week as City remain stuck in trouble in the League Two dogfight.

The dramatic 3-2 home defeat to Rotherham – when Michael Flynn’s penalty was saved at the end of stoppage time – has intensified the chase for the 32-year-old Charlton hitman, who is also being tracked by his old club Dagenham and Notts County.

As revealed exclusively in the T&A on Friday, City want Benson on loan until January, when they aim to make the deal permanent for a fee worth more than £100,000.

They have three days until the emergency loan deadline and Parkinson wants Benson on board in time for Saturday’s trip to Gillingham.

He said: “Benno is a player we’ve been looking at for a while and we’re working hard to bring him to the club. Hopefully we can do that (before Thursday).

“He wants to come here but it’s getting the deal over the line that’s tough.”