Josh Mullin proved irreplaceable for Livingston, according to head of football operations David Martindale.
So Gary Holt’s assistant jumped at the chance to sign the midfielder for a second time two years after he left for Ross County.
Mullin helped Livi to consecutive promotions before making it a personal hat-trick with County instead of playing for the Lions in the top flight.
But he has re-signed for the rest of the campaign with the option of staying for a further two seasons after requesting a transfer last week.
Martindale told Livingston’s website: “I’m absolutely delighted to get Josh back to the club. Josh played a massive part in our success in both the League One and Championship seasons and it’s a fantastic signing for the club.
“I brought Josh here from Albion Rovers originally as you could see the potential he had and it’s fair to say he has kicked on massively and I personally believe there is still more to come.
“To be honest, we were all gutted that Josh left after our promotion to the Scottish Premiership as he was such a pivotal player for us in those two previous campaigns.
“Since the day Josh left the building, I’ve been actively looking to replace him with a modicum of success – I never thought that trying to find a right-footed right-winger would be so hard.
“I didn’t envisage that when he left the club, that Josh himself would be the one filling the void he left two years later.”
There was further good news for Livi when midfielder Scott Pittman signed a two-year contract extension that ties him to the Tony Macaroni Arena until the summer of 2023.
Pittman has made 227 appearances since joining Livi from Bo’ness United in February 2015.
Martindale said: “For me, Pitz has been absolutely massive for the club over the last five seasons.
“He is pivotal in the way we play and such low maintenance on a daily basis whilst continuing to bring so much to the team on a regular basis.
“I brought Pitz into the club back in February 2015 having played in the centre of midfield with him previously myself at Broxburn Juniors for a few seasons.
“He has taken the jump at every level in his stride and, in my opinion, would be a player that any outside of Celtic and Rangers in this country would be interested in if available.”
