Exeter City manager Paul Tisdale said it is a risk worth taking after signing Alex Nicholls on a short-term loan from Northampton Town.
The Cobblers striker, 26, hasn't started a game for 22 months after breaking his leg playing against in Northampton Town's match with Port Vale in October 2012.
However, the player has gone through a full pre-season training schedule at the Sixfields and is now just in need of same game time at League Two level.
On the flipside City are short of attacking options but, with little money available to attract new players, they are limited in what they can do.
As a result the deal to bring Nicholls to St James's Park, which is initially thought to be for a one-month period, is a deal that works for both clubs and one that Tisdale is particularly pleased about having been an admirer of Nicholls when he played for Walsall in League One.
"It is compromise and the compromise is that we are able to afford it because we are helping Northampton in the process to get one of their players fit," said Tisdale. ""That is the business we have to do at the minute in order to get another player in.
"So what do we get? We get a player who is perfectly capable of playing at this level and playing in our team and playing at a higher level.
"It gives us another attacking player. One thing we haven't got at the moment is options of the bench, with any proven force, injection of pace and creativity. We have got young players who can do that, but Nicholls has got that proven ability. We haven't had the opportunity, over the last few games, to make those changes from the bench."
Naturally supporters will be concerned about Nicholls' fitness, but Tisdale is confident that his injury won't be a problem.
The City boss admits he may struggle to play a succession of full 90 minutes for the club, but that is something they have to accept.
"There is a doubt on his match fitness and reliability because he hasn't played for so long," said Tisdale. "However, I think he is ready to start games. I don't think his injury is an issue. What you tend to get and I'm not speaking of him, but I'm speaking generally about players who have been injured for a while, is that they haven't proven their ability to play 90 minutes, recover, and then play another 90 minutes.
"They haven't actually got into that swing of playing game after game.
"Nicholls' injury is fine. He is training adequately. The unknown factor is playing 90 minutes and recovering quickly and other parts of the body not letting you down.
"It is not often the injury that is issue, it is the whole package.
"However, he has had a full pre-season, with Northampton. It is not like he has just come out of the injury room. He has had a good couple of months' training. It is just about getting into the swing of playing 90 minutes again and that is why Northampton are willing to loan him out because they don't need to take that risk.
"We need to take that risk and I'm looking at his fitness and I'm saying we will take that risk."
In terms of other movement in or out of the club during the final few hours left before the transfer window closes at 11pm tonight (Monday), Tisdale said he didn't expect anything to happen.
"I don't see anything cropping up," he said. "I'm always looking to improve the team, but I can't. I think Alex Nicholls is pushing the boat for us and the fact is we just can't afford anything.
"Unless someone comes in at the 11th hour there won't be anybody leaving. I don't think that will happen now. I think it will be another quiet deadline day for Exeter City. I think if anything was going to happen, in terms of someone coming into make a bid for one of our bright young players, it would have happened over the weekend."
Watch the moment Alex Nicholls returned to playing football after 21 months out for Northampton Town.
