DUNDEE UNITED midfielder Chris Erskine has signed a pre-contract agreement with Partick Thistle, and the Firhill club are hopeful they may even be able to secure his services before the end of the January transfer window.

The 28-year-old will return to his former club in the summer upon expiry of his contract at Tannadice, with a three-year deal agreed until June 2019.

Erskine previously spent four years at Partick Thistle after joining from Kilbirnie Ladeside in 2009, before signing for his former manager Jackie McNamara at Dundee United in 2013. He came back to Firhill on a six-month loan in 2014, but will now return on a permanent basis in June, or sooner, if the Firhill club can agree a fee to release him from his contract.