Dundee boss Jim McIntyre has told Sofien Moussa, Elton Ngwatala and Kharl Madianga that they are free to find other clubs.
The trio were all signed by Neil McCann and were initially given a chance to impress by the current manager but having failed to do so, they have been frozen out of the first-team picture in recent weeks.
Striker Moussa has only scored two goals in 13 appearances this season with both coming against League 2 Stirling Albion in the Betfred Cup on the opening day.
Ngwatala and Madianga were snapped up by McCann this summer with the former manager believing they had a big future at the club.
However, with McIntyre now looking to bolster his squad in the January window, he has confirmed that the three players are surplus to requirements.
He said: “We’ve told Moussa, Madianga and Ngwatala that if they can find themselves another club, then they’re free to go.
“Like any manager you have your own opinions on players and what you think is required. They’ve been told if they can get themselves fixed up then we’ll not stand in their way.”
While willing to confirm that three players had been told they could leave, McIntyre was understandably reluctant to divulge the identities of any potential January reinforcements.
However, having had adequate time to assess the squad already at Dens, he has a clear idea of what he needs: “Absolutely. We can talk about it but there’s nothing really to tell in terms of I don’t announce anything until it’s done.
“I do feel we need a bit more competition, that’s the biggest word I would use. There needs to be more competition for places.
“In turn that gets the best out of the players. To be honest, the team’s been kind of picking itself lately because I don’t feel there’s enough strength in depth to the squad.
“That’s something we’ve got to try and address. I’ll say it again, it’s not easy in this window.
“January is notoriously difficult to try and get what you want, so you might not be getting exactly what you want, but I do feel the squad needs a wee bit of freshness to it to help the good players already here.”
