Derek McInnes would like answers from Graeme Shinnie and Gary Mackay-Steven on their futures in January.
Both players are out of contract at Aberdeen and to date, there has been no progression with tying either of them down to longer-term deals.
Mackay-Steven has shone this season, leading the way with six goals and earning a recall to the Scotland squad. Since joining in 2015, Shinnie has been named club captain, led the Dons to three finals and made his Scotland debut.
McInnes is no stranger to losing key players – he has lost Ryan Jack and Kenny McLean in consecutive summers – but hopes the next month brings good news for two integral parts of his squad.
He said: “It would be nice for them to let me know in January, for forward planning. We deserve that, I deserve that. But they’re well within their rights to weigh up their options.
“I’ve been used to losing a lot of good players every summer and there’s no point me feeling sorry for myself. It doesn’t do you any good – it’s part of the job.
“I’m hoping we can keep them. We’ve been good for them and they’ve been good for us. While I respect their wishes to weigh up their options, they know they’re in a good place here. The club has helped them push their careers on and hopefully that helps in their decision-making.
“If it doesn’t, we’ll deal with it. Both lads have indicated a real enjoyment in being here – by staying here they’d be more than happy. Hopefully we get to work with them for a bit longer.”
While January will be a big month for potential outgoings, McInnes also has scope to add to his squad if the right player becomes available. Another striker was on the agenda in the summer and the Dons boss has previously admitted he tried “five or six” options without success.
He added: “We’ve invested money in Lewis Ferguson and he’s more than paid that back. We spent £150,000 on Chris Forrester but other than that, we’ve not spent any money and lost some really good players.
“We tried to bring in a striker in the summer and if we identify someone that can help our cause, I can always ask the question of the board. They’ve always been supportive and if we think there’s money there to help the squad achieve what we want to achieve, we can certainly ask the question.”