a busy and successful summer

The first team squad for season 2013/14 is now complete with the exception of another goalkeeper. In the space of two months a lot of players have left the club; Willo Flood, Barry Robson, Calvin Zola, Gregg Wylde, Lawrence Shankland have arrived and Niall McGinn and Ryan Jack have signed new deals. CEO Duncan Fraser is responsible for bringing in the players the manager identifies. He tells RedTV about the hard work that has gone on over the summer.

“It has been a good summer it terms of the amount business that has been done and the approach that has been adopted. Although the manager had a break he was pretty much working the whole time to bring about the turnaround in the squad which he has successfully done.

“You start with a sheet with a number of potential targets but the manager was keen to narrow down his options and we have managed to get in his options so it has therefore been a successful summer.

“There are a lot of players out of contract and at the beginning of the process we discussed whether we wanted to go after our targets now or whether we wanted to hold something back to nearer the end of the transfer window but the manager was very keen to have his squad his place for the start of the pre-season campaign and the trip to England.

“As the manager indicated yesterday he is still to bring in another goalkeeper and this will hopefully happen sooner rather than later. We know what he wants to do there.

“Every deal has been easy to get over the line. Derek did a great job in selling Aberdeen Football Club to the players which made the negotiating process a lot easier. The manager has used his budget tremendously well. He was also only interested in bringing in players who wanted to come to Aberdeen. He has a real inner determination to bring success back to this football club. He really does relish the challenge and his determination to succeed is rubbing off on all the players and the staff.”

RedTV | to watch the interview in full please click here