Hibernian boss Lee Johnson is keen to bring Burnley defender CJ Egan-Riley back to Edinburgh next season.
The 20-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Easter Road, making 14 appearances.
The former Manchester City man clearly made an impression during his short stint in the SPL, with Johnson desperate to extend his stay.
“A lot of that will be dictated by the loans. I’d love to have Will [Fish] and CJ back, as an example,” he told the Daily Record.
“They’re not our only loans but while I remember a media report suggesting we had too many loans, with some of these guys we have an option to turn it into a permanent and some we haven’t. That comes into play.
“I’d like to keep the stability, trim the fat and use the finances well to recruit quality. I’d rather lower the numbers and have higher quality.
“Then obviously if we’ve got good young players to supplement the squad or we can rotate the loans, bring them back and one of them breaks through, we’re all laughing. I’d much rather have a smaller squad because it means there are fewer problems for me!
“I like an environment where everybody feels like they have a carrot at the end of the week.
Egan-Riley missed Hibs’ final game of the season with a hamstring injury he suffered in their 4-2 win against Celtic.
According to Johnson, the centre-back – who requires surgery – is now facing a recovery period of three to four months.
Egan-Riley recently opened up on the recovery process, insisting he was determined to come back even stronger.
“With surgery I won’t be able to do anything for a couple of weeks rehab wise,” he told Burnley’s official website.
“But then I will come back in and begin the rehab process with the medical and sports science staff here at Burnley.
“I will most likely do the whole of pre-season here and get through the comeback and then see where I am at.
“I just want to fully focus and concentrate on getting back fit now and then go from there and see what the plan is for me going forward.”
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