St Johnstone are closing in on the signing of central midfielder Jacob Butterfield until the end of the season.
The 31-year-old Englishman was most recently playing his football with Melbourne Victory in the A-League.
Butterfield has plenty of experience south of the border and started his career at Barnsley - where he became captain - before joining Norwich and spending time on loan at Bolton as well as Crystal Palace.
Spells at Middlesbrough and Huddersfield Town would follow until he was snapped up for £4 million by Derby County in 2015.
He would help the Rams to the Championship play-off the following year, but was later farmed out on loan to Sheffield Wednesday and then Bradford City. He joined Luton Town in the summer of 2019 and then decided to head Down Under.
Melbourne Victory announced in July that Butterfield was not continuing his stay with the club.
He returned to the UK and spent time training with Doncaster but, more recently, has been building his fitness and match sharpness with Barnsley’s under-23 side, who are coached by his former team-mate Martin Devaney.
Now Butterfield looks set to make his mark in the Scottish Premiership.
Perth manager Callum Davidson admitted earlier this week that he was looking to bolster his squad with “four or five” new faces.
Saints, not helped by injuries this season, sit 11th in the Scottish Premiership - three points ahead of basement boys Ross County. Aberdeen are the visitors to McDiarmid Park for a 3pm kick-off on Saturday afternoon.
Meanwhile, St Johnstone are offering fans a Boxing Day boost at McDiarmid Park and hope to fill out both the East Stand and Main Stand.
Season ticket holders can bring a friend or family member along to the Premiership match with Celtic for the reduced price of £20 (£15 for a concession). Kick-off on December 26 is 12.30pm.
