Former Dundee United favourite Mark Wilson is set to rejoin the club.
The versatile defender was released by Bristol City at the end of last season and had been granted training facilities by Tangerines boss Jackie McNamara in recent weeks.
Wilson, who to all intents and purposes replaced McNamara in the Celtic team when he left Tannadice for Parkhead in 2006, has done enough to convince the United gaffer to offer the 29-year-old a contract.
McNamara said: “We’re trying to tie Mark up short-term. It’s for six months. He’s down south just now but we’re speaking to him again tomorrow with a view to doing something.
“He’s versatile and has experience so he’s one that will help the squad. Mark had a good connection with the club before and it’s important he gets back playing.”
Meanwhile, United decided last night not to appeal against the red card shown to Gavin Gunning in Saturday’s draw at Easter Road.
The big defender, who was making his first-team comeback after being out with injury since February, was sent off along with Hibees midfielder Kevin Thomson in an incident that sparked a mass melee involving players from both sides.
Gunning is maintaining his innocence, a stance backed by his manager.
However, after unsuccessfully appealing a red card to former United defender Barry Douglas last season, McNamara was wary about spending time and money battling Gunning’s dismissal.
Speaking before Monday night’s confirmation that there would be no appeal, the manager said: “I’ve looked at it again and I still don’t see it any different.
“We’ll obviously need to see what the referee’s report says and hopefully he sees it differently this time.
“We appealed one last year which we thought was a certainty to be overturned and it wasn’t. I went all the way down to Glasgow which turned out to be a waste of time and money.
“So I will need to have a word with the chairman to see what we’re going to do. It’s obviously very frustrating because it was Gavin’s first game back and I thought he strolled the match.
“Hibs weren’t causing us any problems but when Gavin got sent off it totally changed the match. They got a lift from it and it upset the balance of our team having to put Paul Paton to right-back and Sean Dillon back into the middle.
“We lost a wee bit of shape so it definitely did have an effect on the game.”
Hibs have announced they will appeal Thomson’s red card.
A spokesman for the Leith side said: “Hibernian can confirm that following the review of the TV footage of the match versus Dundee United at the weekend, the club have notified the Compliance Officer at the Scottish FA of our desire to lodge a player reference for Wrongful Dismissal against the red card shown to Kevin Thomson.”