IN the aftermath of last season's Championship play-off final defeat to Hull City, Kim Hellberg sat down with Middlesbrough's recruitment team and plans were immediately laid out for the summer transfer window.
Four months later and with the transfer deadline having now passed, Hellberg is thrilled with the work that's been done on Teesside and the players at his disposal.
"I like the squad so much," said Hellberg, who hailed the work of Boro's recruitment team, led by Kieran Scott and Chris Jones.
Among the top priorities for Boro was adding depth. It was clear in the final stages of last season that Hellberg only trusted a core group of players and more options were needed.
He's certainly got that now. At Burnley on Wednesday night, the likes of Tommy Conway, Rokas Pukstas, Ashley Phillips, Max Arfsten and David Strelec were all on the bench - and he now has deadline day recruits Amario Cozier-Duberry and Connor Barron to add into the mix.
Cozier-Duberry also adds pace, which Hellberg felt was required. As was bolstering the forward line, and Will Lankshear already has the look of a transformational signing after his stunning start to life on Teesside.
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"I like the players, the profile of the players, how hard they work," said Hellberg of the new faces in Boro's squad.
"I also understand what we need to do in terms of getting better from it - and everyone is on board with that, everyone works very hard to do that.
"I am responsible for creating an environment here every day that makes people get better, and I have to push them very, very hard in different ways to get to that. I'm very happy with the players I have here. They are great lads and good footballers."
Hellberg added: "After the playoff final, we talked a lot about the pace and that's been something we also looked at.
"It's been different categories of profiles. We looked at the depth, of course, and there's been different types of profiles where they have different qualities, which you need in football.
"It's my job to try to put them on the pitch in their best position or spaces as much as possible, and build the structure connected to the principle in how we play.
"It's very important for us to have that variety, because I think in some ways, we maybe lacked that a little bit last season, for example, the pace last season, which we added this summer, so I'm very happy with that."
It turned into something of an overhaul this summer, with Boro also having to replace Hayden Hackney, last season's Championship Player of the Year.
Hellberg has said on a number of occasions so far this season that it will take time for his new-look side to gel and hit top form, but he's excited by the future - short and longer-term - on Teesside.
"If you could keep Hayden, of course you want to keep Hayden - but that's football, and you need to get things together," he said.
"It is a balance, and letting some players go can open up for other players to come in.
"What I'm most impressed by is the category of player we looked for - players that want to develop, that can develop.
"A lot of young players that have a lot of potential in them, which means that the signings are brilliant for the club. That is more than just winning the next game. It creates a good group to work with.
"But it’s always a balance in terms of, we signed those, and then maybe we need to let someone go. We have those discussions, of course, and sometimes the decision is down to other people, and sometimes the decision can be down to the player.
"You may have to make a decision connected to it's only one year left, and do we sell him now or do we let him play out the contract, for example.
"It's so many things that other people have to make decisions about. I always give my input, and we have a lot of good discussions, because we look at it from different perspectives.
"Everyone doesn't have to think the same thing all the time because that's not how life works, but when we go out the door, it's important that we go with what we have decided, and that we're very strong in that."
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