There was no transfer deadline day excitement to get pulses racing among the Aberdeen support but in truth Derek McInnes’s work was done early this summer.
It had to be with the need to reinforce his squad for the Europa League campaign undoubtedly the priority for the Dons boss.
By the time the Aberdeen players returned to pre-season training in June much of the manager’s work had been done with Greg Leigh, Ryan Hedges, Curtis Main, Craig Bryson, Ash Taylor and Jon Gallagher all on board.
They were joined by Funso Ojo and James Wilson who were both added before the domestic campaign got underway with Zak Vyner the final new arrival on the eve of the Europa League third qualifying round first leg tie against HNK Rijeka in Croatia on August 8.
Indeed, much of the transfer focus in August was on which players would be heading out of Pittodrie.
Following two disappointing seasons in a red shirt Stevie May was given the chance to start over at St Johnstone. After what seemed like an age May finally secured a return to McDiarmid Park last week after Saints and the player reached an agreement at the third attempt.
The other players to head out are loan players. Goalkeeper Danny Rogers is at Morton, Miko Virtanen has joined Arbroath, David Dangana is at Stranraer and Frank Ross is at Ayr United.
As for the new arrivals, a horrendous week of three defeats in a row apart, the early signs are encouraging although no serious assessment can be made at this stage.
The big name signing of the summer was Craig Bryson from Derby County. Having been earmarked for the role of the box-to-box driving force to succeed departed captain Graeme Shinnie, Bryson has been playing catch-up after starting the season behind his team-mates in terms of fitness due to an ankle injury suffered with the Rams last season.
He has played an hour of the last three games and his influence is growing steadily with each passing game but clearly the best is yet to come from the former Kilmarnock player.
The only player which the Dons paid a transfer fee for is Funso Ojo. A target of Hibernian, Ojo turned down an offer to move to Easter Road to join the Dons. The defensive midfielder had a memorable home debut against Hearts before undoing all his good work with a red card against Rijeka in his second game at Pittodrie.
Perhaps his dismissal should be chalked down to excitement getting the better of him as he has settled into the team as the midfield anchor in front of the back four.
The defence has been reinforced. Greg Leigh looks a solid dependable left back and with two goals to his name already he looks a shrew acquisition. Filling the void of the impressive Max Lowe last season was never going to be easy but he is off to a fine start.
Dons fans know exactly what they are getting from Taylor, who is back at Pittodrie for a second spell. A big, commanding, imposing presence, he was a member of the Dons team which pushed Celtic all the way in their first treble-winning campaign under Brendan Rodgers. A hamstring injury has curtailed his involvement so far with the defender suffering a recurrence of the injury in training last week.
Vyner, a loan signing from Bristol City, has already had ample opportunities to show his versatility, playing at centre-half and right-back in recent weeks. He looks equally comfortable in either position.
The biggest influx, however, has been in the forward areas. Ryan Hedges brings guile, clever movement and excellent crossing ability while Jon Gallagher’s workrate and pace has also caught the eye.
That has meant James Wilson, who returned to Pittodrie on a permanent deal after spending last season on loan from Manchester United, has started just one game so far.
The same applies to Curtis Main. The former Motherwell man has been brought in to provide competition in attack for Sam Cosgrove. With 10 goals in 10 games it’s fair to say Cosgrove has met the challenge head-on. That means, unfortunately for Main, he’ll have to bide his time.