Ross County manager Malky Mackay does not expect loan signings to be concluded quickly this summer.
The Staggies are in the market for fresh faces with a number of players having moved on.
Leading scorer Regan Charles-Cook earlier this week made the switch to Belgian side KAS Eupen, shortly after midfielder Blair Spittal joined Premiership rivals Motherwell.
Declan Drysdale has joined Newport County after spending the latter half of last term on loan from Coventry City.
Fellow loan signings Joseph Hungbo, Jake Vokins, Ash Maynard-Brewer, Kayne Ramsay and Jack Burroughs have returned to their parent clubs.
County have not given up hope some of those players could return to Dingwall, with Mackay yet to add to his squad this summer.
Although the Staggies boss has spoken of his desire to implement a longer-term recruitment strategy, it is likely he will look to delve into the loan market for some arrivals this summer.
Mackay says the process of bringing players in could take a number of weeks due to circumstances at other clubs.
He said: “There are obviously six loans and three or four out of contract. There could still be 10 people leaving the club, so it will be a busy summer again.
“As far as the loans going back to their clubs is concerned, and us talking to clubs about loan players, it never changes.
“It’s usually last-minute stuff.
“Very few will give you a loan player for the first day of pre-season, because they are in the exact same position where they need numbers.
“Once they get numbers in, it’s like a domino effect, so that will take time.
“Ideally you’d have everybody in from the start of pre-season, but that’s not going to happen unfortunately.
“Sometimes you’re at the behest of the club you’re dealing with, or a transfer decision that the boy is going to make, whether they’re going here or there.”
Stronger starting point this summer
Mackay made 12 new signings after taking charge at Victoria Park last summer, with 15 players moving on.
Efforts have been made to tie down more members of the existing squad, with Ross Callachan, Connor Randall, Jordan White and Jordan Tillson among those to pen new deals in recent weeks.
Mackay feels he has a stronger starting point this time around, adding: “That big group that has all signed on means that there’s a body of players here to start with, a structure to start with, which is great.
“We’ve got a group of players here who already know how I want to work, and are already in that vein and will want to kick on again.
“It’s great that that’s there as well.
“I’m really looking forward to getting into that and having a right good go at the League Cup, because we were unfortunately unable to do that.
“It will be busy in terms of players coming in over the summer, when we can get them in and how things are going to look until the transfer deadline.
“I’ll be driving up to Ullapool for a bit of light relief this summer again, a bit of head space where I can turn the mobile off at some point, because I’m sure it will be like that again.”
