The best way for Duk to repay Aberdeen for giving him a second chance is by recreating the form which made him unplayable and unstoppable two campaigns ago.
Attacker Duk was superb in his debut season at Aberdeen in 2022-23 and really lit up Pittodrie and Scottish football.
Those levels dipped last season and he then went AWOL for three months during the summer.
Duk knows he made a mistake and has owned up to it and apologised.
After returning to the club after his period AWOL, the attacker was named in the match-day squad for the first time for the 2-1 win against Dundee.
Although Duk was an unused substitute at Dens Park, it was another step on the road back.
Duk been taken back in and given a clean slate, which is the way it should be.
But he now has to repay manager Jimmy Thelin and the club for welcoming him back and helping him through a difficult situation – and also pay-back the fans who have accepted his apology.
Saying sorry only goes so far, though, and now Duk has to reproduce the levels he did in his first campaign at Pittodrie.
We all know he has those superb levels of performance in his locker – now Duk has to consistently deliver that again.
Resilience to secure 12th victory
Duk watched from the bench against Dundee as in-form Aberdeen maintained their 100% start under Thelin with a 12th win from 12 games.
But the Reds had to really work to keep their winning streak going.
Aberdeen were well tested against Dundee, but still managed to see it out to get another victory.
The first half was even, but Dundee were very good in the second half.
Aberdeen had to display real resilience in being able to stand up to a strong second half performance by Dundee.
The Dons relied on their defensive capabilities and organisation to secure another three points as they had to absorb a lot of pressure.
They suffered a huge blow when conceding a goal to a converted penalty just before half-time to make it 2-1.
When you lose a goal like that, it takes real grit and determination to bounce back.
It also gives the opposition a major lift going into the second half.
Defence will be tested in October
I wasn’t surprised with Dundee’s level of performance and Aberdeen had to double down and keep it as tight as they possibly could.
The introduction of Ante Palaversa off the bench helped as he is a strong, physical midfielder.
Manager Thelin identified Aberdeen were not controlling the game in the second half and made the right changes.
The Dons will need that defensive organisation in October with big games against Hearts, Celtic and Rangers coming up.
Most of the fixtures in Aberdeen’s winning streak have been about taking the game to the opposition and attacking.
However, in the second half against Dundee, it was about locking the door.
And Aberdeen certainly did that as they were rock solid.
Enjoy the ride on Aberdeen winning juggernaut
The winning juggernaut under Thelin just keeps rolling on.
Aberdeen fans just have to enjoy it.
Get on the juggernaut, enjoy the ride and see where it takes the club.
I’m sure there will be bumps in the road, but there is everything to suggest they will not derail the journey.
Aberdeen’s squad is strong and the players are buying into what the new manager wants.
The team are energetic, creative and work as a unit, while there is also real individual talent.
Everything is very rosy at Pittodrie now.
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