Caley Thistle will have to be patient in their bid to bring former player Miles Storey back to Inverness.
Despite having 18 months of his contract remaining, Storey is keen to cut short his move to Aberdeen after failing to make an impact at Pittodrie.
That has alerted a trio of Scottish Premiership clubs – Caley Thistle, Partick Thistle and Kilmarnock – to the Englishman’s availability and Storey’s preferred choice is to return to the Highlands with Inverness.
However, Storey will not be allowed to leave Pittodrie until the Dons have found a replacement.
Storey had a successful season-long loan at Caledonian Stadium from English League One side Swindon Town last year, finishing leading scorer with 13 goals from 37 appearances under previous Inverness manager John Hughes.
Foran was keen to stress no approach has been made for the Aberdeen player yesterday when he said: “We have no interest in any player who is signed with another club. There has been no contact between ourselves, Miles or Aberdeen.”
But Storey will move to Caledonian Stadium if he can secure his release from the Dons.
His form persuaded Dons manager Derek McInnes to hand the Englishman a two-year deal in the summer but the 23-year-old has found his opportunities limited so far, with one goal in 11 appearances, only two of which have been starts.
Storey’s peripheral role at Pittodrie has led to him slipping behind Adam Rooney and Jayden Stockley for a forward role at the club, while opportunities to play behind an attacker have failed to materialise due to the form of Niall McGinn, Jonny Hayes and James Maddison.
Foran also wants to bring midfielder Larnell Cole back to the club for the second half of the campaign.
The Highlanders are waiting for a response from English Championship club Fulham in their attempt to extend the loan of Cole until the end of the season.
Cole’s current deal expires on January 15, with Foran eager to keep the Englishman at the club until the summer.
