Why Aberdeen would be keen on St Mirren boss Jim Goodwin - savvy recruitment, hard to beat, ready for next level

Aberdeen's manager hunt has turned towards Paisley, just as it did 44 years ago.

Back then, Sir Alex Ferguson’s time at St Mirren came to a somewhat acrimonious end after four years at Love Street.

Now it is Jim Goodwin who has caught the attention of the Dons. It was reported on Tuesday that an approach had already been rejected by the Buddies.

According to the Daily Record, talks between the clubs are ongoing and the Irishman has a £250,000 release clause. Paying such a fee would show how highly Aberdeen regard Goodwin, who appears to be the No.1 target to replace Stephen Glass.

The 40-year-old is currently in the strongest position since taking over at St Mirren in 2019. The Buddies sit in the top six, they are in the Scottish Cup quarter-final and are in their best run of form in the league since the 2017/18 campaign when they won promotion from the Championship.

Goodwin’s tenure has been about steady progression. It hasn’t been exhilarating, it hasn’t fallen into a capricious state. Small incremental improvements.

When he first arrived, taking over from Oran Kearney he was dealt a difficult hand. The squad required rebuilding after staying in the league through the play-offs but he wasn’t hired until the end of June meaning he had a little over two weeks until the first competitive match in the League Cup.

Goodwin, more than anything, made St Mirren competitive and functional. They won just seven league games in what was a shortened season due to Covid and never put back-to-back wins together.

The 1-0 win over Hearts in March 2020 proved to be crucial. Jonathan Obika's goal allowed them to get themselves out of any danger and up to ninth place.

For St Mirren to be better the following campaign they needed to become