Such is the shrinking nature of football’s close season, already thoughts at Dundee and Dundee United are turning to next season.
The new League Cup format means the Dark Blues and Tangerines will see competitive action in mid-July, quickly followed by league campaigns from early August.
That means managers Paul Hartley and Ray McKinnon are already working long hours to make sure they’re ready for the major challenges that lie ahead in 2016/17.
That leads to the question, which of the pair faces the bigger task?
With United needing to get back up to the Premiership at the first time of asking, the obvious answer is McKinnon, but events between now and the big kick-off may mean Hartley’s third full season as Dens boss could see him face difficulties.
As the Tele highlighted last week, with a team to rebuild and time short, the new Tannadice gaffer cannot expect a honeymoon period.
He has positions to fill in his squad, quite a few of them, and must do it within a budget that, in real terms, will be smaller than any of his predecessors dating back to at least Jerry Kerry in the 1960s.
With every penny so precious, McKinnon knows he cannot afford to take risks with the men he brings in.
Every signing is a gamble but, with a smaller squad to work with, he must make sure his new arrivals are not just of the necessary quality but are players with a history of being available most weeks.
That’s why anyone targeted will be thoroughly checked out before they’re allowed to sign a contract.
In his favour, while the wages on offer will be nothing like what’s been handed out before, the name Dundee United still carries clout in Scottish football and should mean he can at least sit down and persuade the right kind of talent to join up.
For Paul Hartley, there’s the consolation that, in terms of numbers, he needs fewer bodies than he’s had to bring in over the past two summers.
Eighth place last season was a touch disappointing but, on their day, Dundee showed they could be at least a match for any team in the Premiership.
He has the nucleus of a top-six side and the likes of Kevin Holt and Julen Etxabeguren will have benefited from now having a season of top-flight football under their belt.
And if James McPake is back from the knee injury suffered in the New Year derby, what has, at times, been a leaky defence should be bolstered.
Hartley’s problem, despite this week’s signing of Yordi Teijsse, could lie in having to replace key attacking talent should big bids come in for Greg Stewart and Kane Hemmings.
Dundee have shown admirable resolve in making clear they’re prepared to lose the influential Stewart for nothing when his contract expires next year rather than sell him cheaply. However, with the player clearly intent on leaving, if big money is put on the table it will be hard to turn down.
Likewise, the aim is to hang on to top scorer Hemmings. Even so, the goals he struck last season haven’t gone unnoticed so offers for his services would come as no surprise.
If both were to leave, finding suitable replacements quickly wouldn’t be easy, though given his habit of doing transfer business early, it’s not being too hopeful to assume the manager already has people in mind.
Any worries must be eased by the prospect of the fast-improving Craig Wighton making more appearances, while there is surely more to come from Rory Loy, whose first campaign was interrupted by injury.
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