Crystal Palace are to explore the possibility of taking the Wales international defender, Ben Davies, on loan from Tottenham next month and have been made aware of the potential availability of the Aston Villa striker, Rudy Gestede.

Alan Pardew, whose side confront Manchester United on Wednesday night before Chelsea’s visit on Saturday, will go into the midwinter window desperate to add to a squad that has been badly depleted by injuries. The Palace manager, whose job has come under increasing scrutiny with his side hovering only three points above the relegation zone as they approach those daunting games at Selhurst Park, has received assurances from the club’s co-owners that reinforcements can be made in January.

Davies, now restored to fitness after an ankle injury, has made only three Premier League starts this season and effectively operates as Danny Rose’s understudy at Spurs, where Mauricio Pochettino tends to use his full-backs in partnerships. The Wales international may find the opportunity of regular first-team football appealing, though Palace’s chances of securing him may actually depend upon Tottenham being successful in their own pursuit of Fulham’s highly rated Ryan Sessegnon.

Palace’s pursuit of a left-back has become a priority with Pape Souaré’s career having been cast into doubt after he broke a leg in a car crash this season. They have scouted numerous players, but could be priced out of a move for Charlie Taylor of Leeds – the Championship club may only listen to offers of around £6m despite the fact he is entering the final six months of his contract at Elland Road – and may struggle to lure Kieran Tierney, 19, from Celtic.

Swansea’s Neil Taylor may be an alternative to Davies, a team-mate in the Wales set-up, and would cost around £4m. The Welsh club could potentially seek to secure Jonathan Williams from Palace as part of any deal.

The need for Palace to secure a back-up striker to support Christian Benteke has been exacerbated by Connor Wickham being ruled out for the season after undergoing surgery to repair a damaged cruciate knee ligament. Another forward, the Chelsea loanee Loïc Rémy, has yet to feature after suffering a thigh injury in September and will most likely be absent until mid-January at least as he continues to work on his fitness.

In that context, Gestede could become an appealing option. The Benin forward cost Aston Villa around £4.5m from Blackburn in the summer of 2015 and scored five top-flight goals as the club finished bottom of the division. He has managed three this term, but is behind Jonathan Kodjia in the pecking order. Villa may look to secure Palace’s out-of-favour former Birmingham City attacker, Jordon Mutch, as part of the deal.

Pardew, who may also sound out Leicester City over Leonardo Ulloa, will also be without his first-choice goalkeeper Steve Mandanda, who is recovering from knee surgery, against United and has now been denied both James Tomkins (groin) and Bakary Sako (thigh) for a month. Jason Puncheon is suspended.