St Johnstone have confirmed the pre-contract signing of Jamie McCart but Matty Kennedy appears to be on his way out and manager Tommy Wright is no closer to strengthening his squad immediately.
Centre-back McCart, 22, has made 62 appearances for Inverness since moving to the Highlands from Celtic in the summer of 2018.
Wright hopes to sign him this month but may have to wait until the summer, and reports claim Aberdeen are set to announce the immediate transfer of Kennedy having already confirmed a pre-contract deal for the winger.
The loss of Kennedy would be a major blow to Wright after Murray Davidson was ruled out for at least six weeks after breaking his arm on Thursday.
Another midfielder, Ross Callachan, was allowed to move to Dundee this month but Wright is yet to make a signing after pinpointing an experienced defender as a priority before the new year.
Speaking to BBC Scotland on Friday morning, Wright said: "I'm not going to give false hope. I could say everything is going rosy, but we have lost out on loads of players over the last few weeks.
"We are not close to getting anyone. I am looking to bring in, but I have got nothing. I'm sitting here with a week to go and I have got nothing lined up, it is still seen to be players out before we can get players in.
"If people don't like me saying it, that is tough, but that is where we are. It is a reality of the situation, but I am hardly over the moon with it."
