St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson has confirmed that Israeli striker Guy Melamed is on the verge of signing for the McDiarmid Park club.
A 2-0 defeat to Celtic was the latest in a long list of matches Saints have lost after failing to convert good play and good chances into something tangible.
Craig Conway hit the post early in the second half against the Hoops when only a few yards out, with Leigh Griffiths and Patryk Klimala piling on the Perth pain by showing him how it should be done in the 90th and 93rd minutes.
Saints are now bottom of the Premiership on goal difference but their bid to get themselves into a league position their outfield play merits will resume after the Betfred Cup break with a new forward in the squad.
“Guy Melamed is here and hopefully we can get the paperwork done in time,” said Davidson.
“Hopefully he will bring goals.
“I have looked for someone a little bit different, someone who can bring a spark to the team.
“We’re hoping he can come in, form a good partnership with the other players and score goals for us.”
Reflecting on the Celtic defeat, Saints’ fourth loss without scoring in a row, Davidson said: “It was sore to take because we played to a very high level and I felt we were comfortable.
“Celtic had to bring on five quality subs to win the game. They had to bring on some of their star players.
“I’m disappointed with the goal because we had a set-piece and that’s three goals in the last two games we’ve lost from that.
“But otherwise I was very happy with the performance level, the enthusiasm and the composure of the team.
“Obviously the one with Craig Conway is the one that got away for us. That just sums up what’s happened all season.
“I am happy with the performances and the worst one we have had this season is a game we won.
“We can’t let our heads go down, we have to keep reiterating the good performances and trying to change it.
“Getting the first goal is the key, that’s what we need to start doing.”
Saints will now face Kelty Hearts on Wednesday night without Danny McNamara and Ali McCann who will be on international duty with the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland respectively.
“Danny was excellent again and I was delighted for him getting his call up to the Ireland under-21s,” said Davidson.
“And the same goes for Ali and the Northern Ireland squad. It’s well deserved.
“But today you can’t just pick them out because we had a lot of players doing well.
“All credit to them and I’m gutted for them because they deserved something.”
Celtic boss Neil Lennon, who has been linked with a deadline day loan move for West Ham’s Robert Snodgrass, paid tribute to his two supersubs, Griffiths in particular.
“It’s no coincidence when he comes on we get the two goals,” he said.
“I’m not say it was all down to him. Griffiths made a brilliant contribution and I was happy with Klimala as well.
“I know what I have got with him. I was disappointed with the way he came back and then he picked up an injury.
“We’ve been patient with him but he knows what I think of him as a player. That was Leigh Griffiths in a nutshell.
“Towards the end we started putting real quality in to the box but we were too passive in the first half.
“That’s what he does. We don’t take that for granted with him, but that’s a great start to his season.”
He added: “I’m delighted to win the game. We deserved it but I wasn’t happy with the first half.
“It was all fur coat and no underwear really. We lacked any sort of aggression in our play.
“Second half was a lot better. We had to wait and be patient.
“I thought we made the subs at the right time and they made a good impact. I was very disappointed but we recovered.”
Star man Odsonne Edouard had a very quiet match – not for the first time recently – and Lennon is hoping the closure of the transfer window will put that right.
“I think he has about three or four more gears to come,” he said.
“Again, I was disappointed with his performance. He needs to settle down. Hopefully after tomorrow he will.
“I can’t speculate but I think it’s apparent it’s been affecting him but I can’t think for him or put words in to his mouth.
“He’s a brilliant player but we are just not seeing the best of him at the moment.
“Hopefully he’ll calm down once the window shuts and come good for us.”
Another Sunday sickener for St Johnstone who lose late to Celtic
