Jim Goodwin has shown a ruthless attitude ever since walking into the Aberdeen job in February to replace Stephen Glass.
The Pittodrie boss axed influential figures such as captain Scott Brown and club stalwart Andrew Considine as 10 players headed for the exit door during the summer. That tasked the former St Mirren gaffer with the job of recruiting the bulk of an entire new squad in order to improve on a tenth placed Scottish Premiership finish last time out.
And that meant 11 new faces arrived at Cormack Park as strike duo Luis 'Duk' Lopes and Bojan Miovski set the Dons back around £1million with the recruitment team searching the continent for talent. But they have shown they are value for money so far with Goodwin insisting that securing exciting young players like Duk on a three-year-deal from Benfica is his scouting blueprint. He said: “We believe if we bring in young players, develop and educate them properly, they will add value and become sellable assets if required.
"Not only that, but they will also add real quality to the team. That is the recruitment strategy that I have decided to go with and that we as a club have bought into. We also don’t want to block the path of kids coming through the academy either, so we have to be mindful of that.
“Duk was playing for the Benfica B team a lot and this is his first real taste of men’s football, so to speak. Many of the players here have a lot of development still to do. They haven’t played a lot of senior football, especially at this level.”
Record Sport assess how all 11 signings have fared so far as the Dons lie third.
Anthony Stewart
Goodwin clearly spotted Stewart's qualities very early on with the former Wycombe centre-back made captain for the campaign. He is also reaping the rewards of his managers latest formation tweak as he sits in the centre of a back three.
Sometimes his distribution has been questionable but in terms of no-nonsense defending, Stewart has been a rock. That was highlighted as he closed out any threat from Kevin Van Veen in the Dons' recent clash with Motherwell. He even opened his account for the Dons with a goal against Kilmarnock earlier this month with a bullet header from a Jonny Hayes corner.
Bojan Miovski
The North Macedonian international has very quickly become a fans favourite and he's even set the challenge of finishing the season as the league's top scorer. He is well on track to be challenging Old Firm hitmen Kyogo Furuhashi and Antonio Colak for the golden boot after netting eight goals from 11 Scottish Premiership matches since arriving from MTK Budapest.
Miovski's superb goal last time out was his first away from home and getting that monkey off his back will have been a huge relief as he looks to push on and form a formidable partnership with Duk.
Cal Roberts
Roberts arrived in the north-east with a lot of hype surrounding him after being nicknamed the "Geordie Messi" by fans of former club Notts County. But he has featured the least of the Dons summer recruits after picking up a long-term hamstring injury in an early cameo against St Mirren in August. The 25-year-old playmaker racked up 16 goals last season in the National League and will be looking to finally hit the ground running when he returns before the World Cup next month.
Leighton Clarkson
The 21-year old has already left his mark on the Red Army with a stunning strike against St Johnstone on August 20. And it's evident why he's on the books of English Premier League giants, Liverpool, as he possesses calmness in possession and an eye for a perfect pass while not being afraid to have an effort on goal.
Liam Scales
The on-loan Celtic defender has added an assurance to the Pittodrie backline with his ability to play the ball out from the back in a style that Goodwin is looking to implement. Scales has won 79 per cent of his tackles, produced an 81 per cent successful pass rate and was unlucky not to net against in the Dons' last clash after a mazy run from the back.
The only blow remains the fact that he can't feature against his parent club, although Goodwin has hinted he would love to secure the Irishman on a permanent deal.
Luis 'Duk' Lopes
The 22-year-old has only started four games since arriving at Pittodrie – and scored in them all. Duk has bagged three goals in as many games over the past seven days and after arriving at Pittodrie lacking fitness, the Cape Verde international is already looking a real find.
He is currently netting every 78 minutes and it's been a variation of strikes, with left foot, right foot and headed goals. A 73 per cent rate for shots on target is impressive reading too.
Hayden Coulson
Coulson has struggled to rack up a consistent run of games after enduring minor injury setbacks since arriving in Scotland.
However when the Middlesbrough loanee is at full stride, he has shown how good he can be. He was at the heart of two goals as the Dons progressed past Partick Thistle in the League Cup quarter finals and has been one of the league's top dribblers. And the left-back's stats make positive reading for clearances, tackles, passing and dribbles as Goodwin looks to sound out keeping the Englishman beyond the season to provide competition for Jack MacKenzie, who's deputised in Coulson's absence.
Jayden Richardson
Richardson appears to be a raw talent but Goodwin has shown faith in the right-back by starting him in 12 games so far this season. The hope is that he can emulate the form shown by Calvin Ramsay, who earned a big-money move to Liverpool in the summer.
He has yet to contribute with a goal or assist, however the 22-year-old looks to have pace and strength to star in a wing back role. And if he can improve on his defensive awareness he may well be worth the £300,000 outlay spent to sign him from Nottingham Forest. Goodwin has switched to a 3-5-2 formation in the past week and it paid dividends with three consecutive wins and Richardson producing his best performance yet as the Dons beat Motherwell on Saturday.
Kelle Roos
Roos has come in after leaving Derby County and immediately was installed as first choice goalkeeper, ahead of long-term stopper Joe Lewis.
The Dutchman has kept three clean sheets from 11 Scottish Premiership games and has proven to be a solid shot stopper. Coming for set pieces has been his Achilles heel and that was evident once again against Partick Thistle as it looked as though he could've prevented Darren Brownlie's consolation goal which points to the 30-year-old having costly lapses of concentration.
Shayden Morris
Aberdeen paid a significant six figure fee to land the 19-year-old from Fleetwood Town this summer. But is only start has come against Annan in the Premier Sports Cup where he was subbed at half-time. Morris has yet to provide any goal contributions however he does have a 88 per cent pass accuracy from his seven league appearances.
Ylber Ramadani
Goodwin recently revealed that stats show Ramadani to be the Dons hardest worker both on the training ground and on a matchday.
But that comes as no surprise with the Albanian international already becoming an unsung hero among the Red Army. His hard work can go unnoticed despite starting all 11 league games this season, with the technical abilities of Clarkson and Connor Barron beside him often receiving the plaudits. However his 87 per cent pass completion rate emphasises his strengths and that he is a very shrewd recruit from MTK Budapest.
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