Paul Hartley’s reputation for improving players sold Mark O’Hara on a move to Dundee.
The former Kilmarnock man was the stand-out performer in the Dark Blues’ opening pre-season encounter at Dumbarton.
He was used predominantly as a defender at Killie but Dens Park boss Hartley sees him as a central midfielder.
And that’s where O’Hara excelled in Tuesday night’s 2-1 win.
The 20-year-old said: “When I met with the manager he sold Dundee brilliantly to me.
“There are lots of players here who have developed under him and the team plays a good brand of attacking football that starts off at the back.
“I feel that I have settled in well.
“The manager spoke to us earlier in the week about wanting to play in a variety of formations and the need to be versatile.
“We tried a new formation at Dumbarton and it seemed to go well.
“I am delighted to get my first game under my belt. It was challenging at times fitness-wise however we played some good football.”
O’Hara, who played for most of the Dumbarton game in an advanced role, added: “I am new to the team and I made a few runs that were not picked up on but that will change over the next couple of weeks.
“There is still some sharpness to come from me as well but that will come. Things will click well.”
The Scotland under-21 player was also delighted that his new side handled losing the lead to Dumbarton and came back to win thanks to Cammy Kerr’s second goal of the match.
He said: “It is important to win every game that we can and build momentum.
“The game got a bit feisty towards the end but that was good as it felt like a real game situation.”
