Aberdeen boss Jim Goodwin has revealed he aims to sign ‘four or five good players’ during the summer transfer window.
Goodwin is set to rebuild an underperforming squad that will finish in the Premiership bottom six for the first time since 2013.
The Reds boss recently confirmed the Pittodrie board have given him a ‘very competitive’ budget to finance a rebuild.
Goodwin has already opened talks with a number of summer signing targets.
Aberdeen are scouring Europe in the hunt for players to bolster Goodwin’s squad.
Head of Recruitment Darren Mowbray recently travelled to Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic in the hunt for players.
Goodwin is determined to deliver a summer rebuild to make the Dons ready for a tilt at a successful 2022-23 campaign.
He said: “I think we need four or five good players to come in to strengthen the squad in the summer and add that freshness to it.
“Every club will be the same with players who are out of contract and moving on.
“You try to freshen things up in every window and we’re no different.”
First transfer window as Dons’ boss
Goodwin is set for his first transfer window as Aberdeen manager, having been appointed to the role in February.
Aberdeen have four games remaining this season and will next face bottom club Dundee at Pittodrie on Saturday.
The Reds have still to eradicate the possibility of being dragged into a relegation play-off scrap and lost 2-1 at home to Livingston on Saturday.
Goodwin’s side are currently five points ahead of 11th-placed St Johnstone, who occupy the relegation play-off berth.
Aberdeen face St Johnstone in Perth in the penultimate game of the season on Wednesday May 11.
The Reds boss aims to end the season on a positive note by racking up wins in the remaining games.
However, he is also working hard on recruitment plans to strengthen for next season.
Goodwin, 40, has been linked with Ipswich Town keeper Vaclav Hladky.
Czech Republic stopper Hladky previously played under Goodwin at St Mirren.
Goodwin is also understood to be interested in St Mirren defender Charles Dunne.
The left-sided defender is contacted to the Paisley club until summer 2023 and it would take a six-figure sum to land him.
Determination to get rebuild right
The Reds boss has already begun his rebuilding by terminating the contracts of Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Mikey Devlin.
Scotland international defender Andy Considine will also leave the club at the end of the season.
Considine has been an unused substitute in recent games having returned from a seventh month injury lay-off.
The 35-year-old had surgery on knee ligament damage in August, suffered in a Europa Conference League play-off loss to Qarabag.
A new contract was taken off the table for Considine after talks broke down.
Goodwin has already informed players with no future at the club they will leave at the end of the season.
In the hunt to freshen up the squad Goodwin and his recruitment team have spread their net across the continent.
He admits successful recruitment will be fundamental to his bid for success.
Goodwin said: “The guys behind the scenes are doing a lot of great work.
“We have a really good team behind us here with Director of Football Steven Gunn and Darren Mowbray, the Head of Recruitment.
“Along with myself, we are spending hours and hours scouring the market to make sure we get things right in the summer.
“That is inevitably where teams are successful or not – when you get that recruitment right.
“That is working day in, day out as we are doing and will continue to do that.”