Jim Goodwin says St Mirren are starting to look like a proper team as he prepares to complete a double swoop for Kyle McAllister and Calum Waters.
McAllister is set to return to Paisley from Derby on a three-year deal.
The winger started his career off with the Buddies before earning a £225,000 switch to Derby in 2017.
But the 20-year-old’s Pride Park spell was blighted by injury and he is now poised to move to Saints after his successful loan spell last term helped the club avoid relegation.
Goodwin has also been desperate to add a left-back to his squad and has now got his wish after agreeing to take his former Alloa player Waters from Kilmarnock on a year-long loan.
It has been a stressful few weeks for Goodwin since he was appointed as Oran Kearney’s replacement but having now added nine new faces the Irishman is finally feeling optimistic.
He said: “There has been a lot of hard work behind the scenes over the last few weeks with Gus MacPherson, Tony Fitzpatrick and myself trying to get people in as quick as we could.
“I’m absolutely delighted to now get these two into the building. Both go into the squad for Saturday and we’re starting to look like a proper team.
“I think the squad looks a lot healthier now. We did well last week against Hibs but didn’t have a natural left-back so had to play Paul McGinn there out of position.
“It’s nice now looking ahead to Aberdeen knowing we’ve got a bit more balance with Calum in there now.
“I worked with Calum at Alloa. He did well, got his move to Kilmarnock but hasn’t played as much as he’d want because of Greg Taylor’s form.
“Without putting too much pressure on him, he’s very similar to young Taylor and I’m looking forward to getting him in the team.
“Everybody knows what Kyle adds. Technically he is fantastic and very creative. A real crowd pleaser.
“He made a great impact last season when he came back. He’s had his injuries but it’s up to us to manage him properly and make sure he stays fit and becomes a regular for us.
“He went to Derby which was a great learning curve. It hasn’t quite worked out but we’re over the moon to get him back on a permanent deal.”
And Goodwin says there could yet be further fresh arrivals before the September 2 transfer deadline.
He said: “We’ve now got plenty of time to the end of the window but there isn’t that rush to get bodies in.
“If there is a player or two who becomes available then we’ll make sure we can make an offer but we’re not desperate.”
There was also more good news for the Saints boss after experts in London confirmed Cody Cooke does not need surgery on his knee injury.
Goodwin said: “It’s fantastic news. Initially we thought he’d need surgery but it’s still a relatively serious injury which will keep him out for probably 12 weeks.
“But it’s a huge relief for Cody that he doesn’t need to go under the knife.
“It turns out the ligament he has damaged is on the opposite side to the cruciate so it’s not as serious as first feared.”
