No late flurries, Dundee completed the majority of their January transfer business nice and early.
In a move completely unheralded at Dens Park in recent seasons, there was no mad dash to beat the deadline.
The final day came and went with no ins and no outs.
There was a bombshell announcement at 3pm of course and the expectation of Luke Graham’s loan to Falkirk to go through on Tuesday.
Aside from Graham, who came back and is heading out again, Dundee’s business was four in and four out.
Courier Sport assesses how the winter window turned out for the Dee.
Outgoings
The players who left Dens were all expected to depart.
Curtis Main was the biggest name among the quartet but it was clear he wasn’t in the manager’s plans.
Often an unused sub in the last few weeks of his time at the club, Main had been well aware his time as a Dee was running out.
The move makes sense for all parties. Ayr United are now top of the Championship and heading in the right direction.
For Dundee, it helped offload a hefty wage for a player not in the first-team picture.
As for Sammy Braybrooke and Julien Vetro, neither loanee had troubled the starting XI for a long time.
Sean Kelly also left at the end of his short-term deal. That was always the plan as Dundee navigated a defensive injury crisis.
Luke Graham’s return was also due to the lack of defenders. Now players are back fit it makes sense to get him game time at Falkirk once more.
Problem areas
Going into the window there were issues to address.
A big one was left wing-back. Ziyad Larkeche’s injury in November had left a gaping hole in that position with no backup to fill the void.
Fin Robertson did a fine job but is a central midfielder playing out of position.
Imari Samuels was lined up and a fee paid to Brighton for his services. The England U/20 international fits what Dundee want – a talented young player with youth caps to be developed with the view to eventually moving on for profit.
Like a lot of the squad, though, he is inexperienced. His start for Dundee at home to Hearts on Saturday was only the third senior start of his entire career.
It may take him a bit of time to get up to speed but with a two-and-a-half year contract signed he is one for the future.
The return to fitness for Larkeche means he’ll have some time to get bedded in.
Another problem area was the lack of an alternative for Mo Sylla. In just a few short appearances, Cesar Garza has shown he is an improvement in the Dundee midfield.
Defence has been an issue all season and the big signing of the window was made there.
Aaron Donnelly came in for an undisclosed fee from Nottingham Forest and made a big difference in his first few games.
Saturday’s performance was a real downturn on that hugely impressive start. However, a three-and-a-half year deal is very good business for a player who already has a senior international cap to his name.
He is young but already shows leadership qualities and, on the whole, looks like a very good signing.
The final signing was Mexican Victor Lopez on loan from Queretaro. We are yet to see him in action but ‘Chespi’ has been brought in to be an upgrade on Vetro.
Pre-contracts
Bubbling along with all the transfer business in January were 13 players out of contract at Dundee in the summer.
One has left in Main, one is officially retiring in Adam Legzdins, one has agreed a new deal in Fin Robertson while Lyall Cameron is now definitely leaving alongside Jordan McGhee.
Five more have been offered new deals – Josh Mulligan, Harry Sharp, Scott Tiffoney, Antonio Portales and Mo Sylla – but can all speak to other clubs about pre-contracts.
It leaves things uneasy for the summer with doubts over so many of the squad. However, the good thing is they will all certainly be Dundee players until at least the end of the season.
Motherwell making the McGhee deal public appeared a pre-cursor to a bid this month only for manager Stuart Kettlewell to resign.
In terms of Cameron, the Rangers interest was public and it was no surprise to see the pre-contract deal has been done.
Dundee will, though, have the benefit of keeping their best creative player on the books until the end of the season. And they will get compensation, too.
Losing him on deadline day with no replacement would have capped a very bad few days at the start of February.
Concerns
The age profile of the team has gone down again with Main leaving and younger players coming in.
So the amount of experience in the squad has reduced and that can be a problem. Especially with maintaining consistency.
That, though, is the strategy at Dens Park and the club are aware of those pitfalls.
In terms of options, the main concern comes if Simon Murray gets injured.
Seb Palmer-Houlden is the only other out-and-out striker on the books. The youngster has done well this season but goals haven’t been flying in of late.
If one of those two is out, there will be little respite for the one who is available. There are others who can step in if needed – like Scott Tiffoney – but Dundee’s tactic of playing a long ball early will be hampered if either striker is out.
The squad is also on the big side now that the injury crisis has eased. There are 25 first team players to choose from so there will be unhappy players not even making the matchday squad every week.
That can be tricky to balance.
Transfer business assessed
Saturday’s thrashing at home to Hearts obviously raised big concerns over the team.
Seeing beyond that, as hard as it may be right now for Dundee fans, the business done this month looks positive. Certainly in the long term.
Problem areas going into the window have been addressed. Time will tell if those measures improve things. Garza already has.
Crucially, the Dark Blues didn’t lose any key players.
The two permanent arrivals continue the theme at Dens Park – young players capped at youth international level picked up from big youth academies down south.
Dundee have a very young squad but there is real talent there, too. Talent that can put the Hearts defeat behind them.
Now it’s the job of Tony Docherty and his staff to help them realise their potential by pushing Dundee up the Premiership table.
And to keep the even-more-vital Simon Murray fit.
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