Aberdeen0
dundee united0
ROBERTO Bisconti, the Aberdeen midfielder, last night warned the club that he will stay on after his contract expires at the end of this season only if they agree to pay the school fees of two of his children.
The Belgian admitted his wife and their three children had returned to their homeland because sending their daughters, Julian, aged 9, and seven-year-old Andrea, to a French school in Aberdeen would be too costly. Their third child, Hugo, is two-and-a-half years old.
The comments from Bisconti came after he had turned in an excellent display in a drab draw against Dundee and will surprise his manager, Ebbe Skovdahl.
''I am happy to play for Aberdeen,'' he said, ''but if there is to be a new contract it would have to include their agreement to pay the school fees of my children because it would cost me (pounds) 28,000 a year to send them both to a private French school in Aberdeen. I haven't been offered anything from the club as yet and would like to start negotiations soon. In the meantime, my family have gone back to Belgium in order for the children to be schooled.''
Bisconti's future at Pittodrie would now appear to be in doubt as the club, keen to suppress expenditure, may see such a suggestion as a demand too far. ''I will not sign unless the club pays the school fees. If they do, I would be happy and my family, who I miss greatly, would return to Aberdeen. I hope they make an effort to keep me. It would be better for them to start talks with me soon because from January I am able to listen to offers from other clubs,'' he said.
Both managers appeared reasonably pleased with a share of the points, although Skovdahl would have felt cheated on more than one occasion by the expert and acrobatic goalkeeping of Julian Speroni for Dundee. He saved them several times, most notably in the fifth minute with a spectacular one-
handed diving stop to keep out Leon Mike's header, then again just before the break when he palmed a ferocious Derek Young strike on to a post before catching the rebound.
Dundee were not without their moments but appeared content to stick to a game-plan of trying to hit on the break with the long ball forward to Nacho Novo, Fabian Caballero, and the enthusiastic Steven Milne. Aberdeen's defence, however, where the centre back pairing of Russell Anderson and Phil McGuire were in outstanding form, never looked like flinching.
Even a late penalty appeal by Dundee lacked real conviction, although their manager, Jim Duffy, was in no doubt that referee Mike McCurry had called it wrong when he waived on play after Milne dropped in the penalty box following a challenge by McGuire.
Milne accepted he and his colleagues were not unhappy to have returned south with a point and, like his manager, pointed to a greater togetherness in the squad where the mix was better than it had been under the previous Dens Park managerial regime.
Many of Ivano Bonetti's imports have departed but Duffy and company will be glad their Latin goalkeeper is still around. Speroni was the big difference between a draw and the loss of three points for the Dens Park side as Aberdeen continue to wonder when their search for a proven goalscorer will end.
''Let's just say the decision was contentious and not one I agreed with,'' said Duffy.
Substitutions
Aberdeen Michie (Mike 79), Clark (Derek Young 87) Dundee Khizanishvili (Nemsadze 83), Sara (Novo 87)
Subs not used
Aberdeen Preece, Tiernan, Billio Dundee Langfield, Mair, Brady
REFEREE Mike McCurry
bookings
Aberdeen McAllister 77 Dundee Wilkie 58, Nemsadze 67
Attendance 14,003
aberdeen
Kjaer
Rutkiewicz Anderson McGuire McAllister
Fabiano Bisconti Deloumeaux Darren Young
Mike Derek Young
Dundee
Speroni
Hernandez Hutchinson Wilkie Mackay
Smith Nemsadze Rae
Caballero Milne Novo
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