Greg Leigh is set to extend his stay at Aberdeen for the rest of the season.
The former NAC Breda left back, whose campaign on loan at Pittodrie was cut short by Covid-19 last season, joined the Dons on a short-term deal in October following his departure from the Dutch club.
A hamstring injury is set to keep him out for the festive fixtures but he has opened talks with the Dons on remaining at Pittodrie until the summer and a deal is expected to be agreed before the window reopens on January 1.
Dons boss Derek McInnes hopes to add a couple of new faces to the squad next month but says some players will also move on to make room for the new arrivals.
He said: “It’s our intention to try to add a couple of players to the squad if we can. A couple of players will potentially move on as well as a consequence.
“I don’t know if it’s always busy. You go into the month with the intention of what you’d like to do. It’s mid-season and clubs don’t want to lose good players so there’s always that extra difficulty to get the players that you want.”
With Britain set to exit the European Union in January clubs are seeking guidance on how Brexit will impact on transfers and McInnes hopes clarity will be provided soon.
He said: “We know the Brexit issue is going to affect lots of industries and we just need to find out what we can and can’t do on the football side.
“It’s difficult enough at the minute in terms of work permits and if that is going to be more of a challenge then it will affect our game.
“There’s a lot to be clarified as to where we stand.”
Transfers can wait for now, however, as McInnes looks to build on the 2-0 win against Ross County last weekend when his side face Kilmarnock at Rugby Park tomorrow.
With just three points separating Celtic, who are second, and fourth-placed Aberdeen manager knows a strong showing in December is vital for his side.
He said: “The points tally is actually good in relation to previous seasons despite having a couple of draws in the league lately.
“We looked at this six match block of games from Ross County last week up to Dundee United at the start of next year as a chance to go on a run.
“You don’t look too much at league positions too early but come the turn of the year you are almost half way through the season
“That’s more of an indication of where you are and you can push on but it’s neither here nor there that Celtic aren’t playing the league this weekend.
“We just need to try to pick up as many points as we can.”
Lewis Ferguson returns from suspension but Dylan McGeouch’s return from groin surgery has been delayed by a setback in training.
McInnes said: “We’re having to give him another two to three weeks for that which is obviously frustrating because we were hoping, with Ross McCrorie suspended for St Johnstone to have Dylan available for these five games in two and a half weeks. But it doesn’t look as if he’s going to be so we need to be patient with that.”