Two first-half goals from Sam Cosgrove set Aberdeen on their way to their easiest victory of the season and had Dundee manager Jim McIntyre wondering not so much how he can fix the problems at Dens Park, but rather if he can.
The Dons won this in style, filleting their opponents at every turn and running them ragged as defender Andy Considine scored with two second-half headers and teenager Connor McLennan hammering in an eye-catching volley, five goals that took them into fourth place in the Ladbrokes Premiership, and just one point behind leaders Rangers while McIntyre’s men continue to struggle as last night he admitted: “We need help.”
Aberdeen’s win brought them ten goals in three games with manager Derek McInnes pleased a goal drought his side had experienced for much of the season is now over. But, he insisted, it could have been better.
“I’d rather be top,” he said, “but considering where we were, we set ourselves a task and target before the game against Livingston to win all four games.
“We felt it was important to hit the 36 points after 19 games. It’s the halfway stage and it’s normally where we are, on target to break 70 points.
“We’ve got nine out of nine since Livingston and we go and try and get the next three against Hearts on Saturday.”
For McIntyre it was a night of frustration and disappointment and he will not be relishing a trip to Celtic Park this weekend.
“We know work needs to be done,” he said. “That was always going to be the case no matter the result. That’s not a reaction to this result. We’ve got some good players but we need some help. We’re bottom of the league for a reason so we’ve got to try to strengthen otherwise it’ll be a long season.
“I said a couple of weeks ago when we went second bottom on goal difference it’s not all about being there in December, it’s where you are in May.”
That it took the Dons 16 minutes to open the scoring was a surprise, given the number of attacks they produced from the opening whistle as McInnes urged his side to pour misery on the visitors, whose last league win over the Dons was fourteen years ago.
Cosgrove was perfectly placed for McLennan’s cross from the right and it’s doubtful if Jack Hamilton even saw the striker’s header flash past him and into the net for his third goal in successive games.
The goal did nothing for the Dark Blues’ confidence, already shot from constant pressure during which even their front man Kenny Miller had to clear a Stevie May shot off the line.
A second goal from the hosts took longer than expected as Dundee continued to feel the heat, but it came a minute from the break as the Reds, for the umpteenth time, ripped open their weary and gaping
defence as Cosgrove raced into the area to fire his strike through Hamilton’s legs.
Five minutes into the second phase of this one-sided affair came the answer as Considine’s free header from Niall McGinn’s corner-kick from the right gave the Dons a third before a cross from the left –
McGinn again the provider – was smacked home on the volley by McLennan. Had there been a couch in the visitors’ dugout, McIntyre might well have been hiding behind it.
Calvin Miller’s surprise strike for Dundee in the 68th minute came out of the blue, the Dundee midfielder afforded both space and time to place the ball past Joe Lewis, Aberdeen’s underused goalkeeper, but normal service was resumed five minutes later as Considine, capitalising on an inability by the Tayside outfit to clear yet another ball across their goalmouth, stuck his head out to connect and leave Hamilton collecting from the back of the net for the fifth time.
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