A bright new future under a forward-thinking coach? Or just another false Don?
It’s a question that Aberdeen fans will be asking themselves having seen their new-look side in action twice already this season, thumping Sweden’s BK Hacken 5-1 at Pittodrie before slipping to a 2-0 defeat in the reverse fixture in Gothenburg. Even in that second leg, the Dons had their chances – had they been a little less profligate, their progression could have been more convincing.
It isn’t the first time that the team has caught the eye in the preliminary rounds of continental competition – indeed, under previous manager Derek McInnes, these initial jousts often featured attacking, vibrant football that regressed to dull, dour fayre with concerning regularity.
This time it’s different, though. When Stephen Glass was named as McInnes’ successor back in March, he vowed to implement his own philosophy at Pittodrie. The brand of football on offer was ultimately what cost his predecessor his job – fans can usually only forgive attritional tactics so long as it keeps getting results, after all – and Glass was appointed with an explicit remit to make Aberdeen a little easier on the eye.
Glass’ holistic approach meant that the change was never going to happen overnight. Getting his foot in the door and working with the players for the tail end of the previous campaign allowed the 45-year-old to make a head start in this sense. It is only now that the former Atlanta United 2 manager will have truly got his ideas across, with a full pre-season under his belt and a transfer window to fine-tune his squad.
There have been little flashes of promise during Glass’ short tenure so far – the 1-0 win away to St Johnstone in April comes to mind, or the 1-1 draw with Celtic later that month – followed by a brilliant burst a little over a week ago in the Europa Conference League, where they dismantled Hacken with a display of swashbuckling, attacking football.
It was the change that Aberdeen supporters had been crying out for for so long, so perhaps it’s little surprise that they were getting a little giddy in the aftermath of that 5-1 win. But what was perhaps most impressive was just how cohesive Glass’ men were on the park – no mean feat, given the high turnover of players at Pittodrie this summer.
The Dons desperately required a new frontline this summer and Glass has delivered just that, bringing in Jay Emmanuel-Thomas from Livingston and American striker Christian Ramirez. In midfield, Scott Brown has been forming a partnership with Lewis Ferguson and further back, Ross McCrorie has been moved to centre-half and 17-year-old Calvin Ramsay has been first pick at right-back. There has even been a recall for Funso Ojo, the midfielder who not so long ago looked to be on his way out of the club.
There appears to have been a concerted effort at Pittodrie to add experience to the team’s ranks. Both of the new centre-forwards are 30, Brown is no spring chicken at 35 and 30-year-old Scotland internationalist Declan Gallagher was signed on a free transfer from Motherwell. The emergence of Ramsay and the addition of 19-year-old Brighton midfielder Teddy Jenks would suggest that Glass is prepared to show faith in youth too, but the trend thus far is that the Aberdeen manager wants proven players approaching the peak of their powers in his starting XI.
As well as adding fresh recruits, one of the biggest challenges facing Glass this summer was always going to be simply keeping a hold of Ferguson. With the transfer window open for another month Aberdeen are not out of the woods yet in that regard, but the 21-year-old has already demonstrated his value to the team this season with a man-of-the-match performance against Hacken at Pittodrie. It’s no exaggeration to hail Ferguson as one of the best players in Scotland plying their trade outside of Glasgow, and the list of rumoured suitors grows longer by the day. Retaining Ferguson is key for the Dons but so far at least, Glass has kept the interested parties at bay.
The goal for this season is simple for Aberdeen: to regain their status as Scotland’s ‘best of the rest’ behind the Old Firm, a title that was wrestled away from them by Hibernian last season. A seven-point gap was all that separated the Dons from Jack Ross’ side in the end and provides an enticing challenge for the year ahead. Improvement is required in the cups, too: last season, they made it to the quarter-finals of the League Cup before being battered 3-0 by Dundee United, while St Mirren sent the Dons crashing out of the Scottish Cup with a 2-1 win in Paisley.
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