Kevin Thomson admits he tried to kick lumps out of Paul Hartley when they played against one another in Edinburgh and Old Firm derbies.
However, he would have been kicking himself if he had turned down the opportunity to link up with his former opponent who is now manager at Dundee.
Thomson, who was released by Hibs at the start of this week, was officially unveiled at Dens Park.
The 29-year-old could not hide his delight at settling his future so quickly and was lavish in his praise of his new boss.
Thomson, who will be Dundee captain next season, said: “I am delighted to sign for Dundee. I have had nothing but positive vibes from the manager and to come here and work for him really excites me.
“I am really looking forward to the new challenge. Obviously, it was disappointing what happened last week, so to have something so good so quickly is a big pick-up for me.
“I didn’t want to be one of those players who touted themselves about left, right and centre. I spoke to other people but I didn’t have as much excitement as when I spoke to the manager.
“I actually used to try and kick him when I played against him.
“He told me I didn’t manage to but I seem to remember getting booked every time I faced him so I must have caught him a few times.
“Seriously though, I didn’t want to tout myself too much. I don’t have an agent, I have done this all myself but the faith he showed in me straight away there was only one decision to make and that was to come to Dundee.”
He continued: “The manager showed great faith early doors in me and was desperate to get me here that was good enough for me.
“It is obviously a big club. I can’t sit here and say I know the ins and outs of Dundee, but I am sure I am going to learn pretty quickly.
“I kept a close eye on them last season as I knew the manager was doing well and I was hoping they would go up.
“I saw what it was like on that last day of the season with Paul running up and down that touchline. I saw the fans and how passionate they were that’s something I want to be part of.”
Thomson was speaking to the press within the Dundee boardroom.
And when asked if he thought the club had a lot of potential, he said: “Of course I do. Even sitting in here is fantastic.
“There aren’t many other clubs who have a great boardroom like this. The pitch looks good and I think there were more than 10,500 here on the last day of the season.
“I know season tickets are going well but regardless of the crowds, I just want to come here and play some football. If we are successful on the park, then the fans will follow.”
Thomson was keen to stress that while Dundee will be the Premiership new boys next season, they will definitely not be content just to “consolidate”.
He said: “I have spoken to the manager at length about the fact there is no one to fear in this league. Everybody knows Celtic are going to run away with it like they did last year.
“So it is a great challenge for us to try to cement a place in the Premiership and show people we are more than capable of competing.
“I do not want to use the word ‘consolidate’ as that sounds like we are only trying to avoid relegation. We are not here to consolidate, we are here to finish as high up this league as possible.
“We do not want to be down the bottom scrapping. I am not going to say we are going to finish second or anything like that, but we want to be challenging to get into the top six. That is achievable. I know the league inside out, I know all the players.
“Look, I know how difficult it is as well. It is not going to be easy far from it. We are going to have ups and downs, but hopefully there will be more ups.”
Fellow new signing James McPake was not at Dens yesterday as he was already away on holiday, but Thomson spoke about the sort of player Dundee will be getting.
He said: “I chatted to the manager regarding Jazza (McPake) and I said to him he would be a good player for us. I have a lot of time for him he is a leader and a winner.
“He would say the same that he was disappointed with how it ended at Hibs but he is a player who will have a big impact for Dundee on the pitch.”
Thomson was also keen to draw a line on what happened to him at Easter Road.
He added: “I don’t want to sit and speak about Hibs. This is a new chapter in my life, but I would like to put on record that I wish them all the best and every success.”
He said: “They are a wonderful club and one that is close to my heart. But I have a new challenge here and a manager that excites me.
“I know he is going to get the best out of me and hopefully I can repay him.”