Before last Sunday, Aberdeen failed to score a solitary goal in the Scottish Premiership this season. Alas, four came at once as they trounced a hapless Dundee side 4-0.
141 days on from their Scottish Cup triumph against Celtic in May, they transformed into timid shadows of their former selves, but could they be turning a corner? The Dons looked set to never score again! Thomas Harper takes a deep and personal look into Jimmy Thelin’s side. Is it the right time to sack the Swede? Or will a change of formation prove to be the key to more success in the North East?
Ah the Dons, the strawberry bonbons, the always inevitably getting it wrongs, the yawns, record holder of the banter year batons, somehow found themselves in yet another mess. Following defeat at home to Motherwell over a week ago, Aberdeen Football Club won 11 of their last 40 games in all competitions, with 9 draws and 20 defeats. On Sunday however, a miracle happened. 11 turned to 12.
They scored 3 in the space of one half, and added another early in the second half, sealing an impressive performance that saw them produce an “xG of 2.56, which is the highest recorded single-half of the season” so far in this odd Premiership campaign.
The cup win was glorious; the unbeaten run was majestic! But alas, the good times screeched to a roaring halt, like a student driver using their emergency brakes at a zebra crossing. That record referenced above in itself is damning, and the small fear from fans in the Pittodrie stands of Aberdeen repeating the same mistakes as their barren run from October to February last campaign was realised, and a tremendous worry of sleepwalking to relegation was fresh in their minds.
It is quite unbelievable that a team that spent so much in the summer transfer window looked worse at every aspect of football possible, but in another way, it was entirely predictable. That is the beauty of my football club. During their unbeaten spell at the start of last season, it looked inevitable that Aberdeen would find a way to score; more than an entire year later, they looked the absolute opposite. As an outfit, the Dons lacked confidence in every area of the park.
It appears that, as an organisation, they are caught in an eternal cycle. Inevitably, they will find a way to disappoint you in the end no matter how high the highs can be. The tactics were passive, predictable and lacked any sort of physical edge entirely. For a squad that boasts clear individual talent in each position, they lacked any form of cohesion; in no manner whatsoever do they play like a unit of players willing to lay everything on the line for their manager, colleagues on the pitch or the fans.
That all changed on Sunday. The Dons were confident, assured, showed a clear effort and enjoyed a more free-flowing attacking style than in previous weeks. Every single player who contributed proved me wrong that day. I was roaring with delight in the Main Stand, it was as cathartic as the last time we faced Dundee in the league, where we ended a 14 game winless streak at Dens Park with a 2-1 win, continuing our winning streak against the Dee in recent memory. Can we play them every week?
So, how did they end up there?
Baffling Line Ups
Many times this season, it became obvious that we sometimes ended games with a better team on the field than the one we started with. It was blatant to everybody except the manager which players should and shouldn’t be involved in the starting line-up, but Jimmy Thelin continued to play favourites of his that have contributed to the team with virtually no effect for way too long.
Topi Keskinen is often anonymous, still very raw as a player, and ultimately ineffective. Sivert Heltne Nilsen, who has the turning circle of a JCB digger, is a dawdler at times and is irritating to watch. Alexander Jensen is predictable, average, and inefficacious, as well as sometimes a defensive liability. These are just some of the names that my hero (not a joke) stubbornly picks every single match day.
Leighton Clarkson, Dante Polvara, and Nicolas Milanovic are just some of the names that should be playing from the first whistle. Players who drive the team forward, show calmness and composure when necessary and show more willingness individually than the other three do combined. Kjartan Kjartansson and Kenan Bilalovic continue to make next to no appearances despite their large fees and the hype/bragging on the club’s personal media channels, but more on that later on. It is very clear to see that Jimmy doesn’t have a clue who his best XI is. There are far worse problems to have, of course.
You could categorise this as a “first-world problem”, but in a division as competitive as the Scottish Premiership, it is imperative that a coach needs to figure out effective ways to match and better their opposition.
The Definition of Insanity: The Tactics
You may or may not know the famous quote from a book called Sudden Death by Rita Mae Brown.
“Unfortunately, Susan didn’t remember what Jane Fulton once said, Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.” In a nutshell that was, and perhaps still has the potential to be Aberdeen Football Club in 2025. I could write a six-act theatrical play on how this actually talented squad was neutralised by a tactical system that meant even the most ineffectual of coaches could figure us out, but I will try my best to stay composed and tie it up in a demure and modest bow.
The ball is played from the back to a marauding full back who then plays it to a winger, then to a midfielder, who passes back out wide, who then whips in an easily dealt with cross. Rinse. And. Repeat. That is how Aberdeen play, summed up in a sarky short sentence, and where are my coaching badges? If I can figure it out, then imagine what a semi-competent coach could do when scrutinising the Dons for his tactical analysis?
Jimmy’s style would work very well in other European leagues; everybody knows his tremendous track record in his native Sweden, but in Scotland where everybody except the Dons are physical, combative and show somewhat of an inclination and willingness to try and win a football match, it doesn’t. It is a more tactical game over there, but the critical nuance of a hulking behemoth or a yappy little terrier who bites your ankles in midfield to disrupt the tempo of a game is still needed in our version of the sport. Shinnie was perfect at that sort of thing years ago, he can still do a decent job of it now and again more often than not, but when he is not on his A-game it is rather noticeable.
So why continue to employ the same instructions to your players during a time when everybody under the sun in the Premiership (except Heart of Midlothian and especially Dundee) managed to exploit? It’s simple really. It’s worked before, so surely it can work again, right? Surely no coaching staff will forget the multiple weaknesses we displayed only a few months ago? Famously, the memories of Scottish data analysts are like goldfish; everybody knows that.
It was and continues to be, baffling that we did not deploy an alternative tactic of any kind until our away defeat to an impressive Motherwell. This squad fits the mould of a classic 4-3-3 with a deep-lying midfielder either dictating tempo, like a Leighton Clarkson or a more physical presence to deal with opposing midfield numbers. Kristers Tobers could honestly play that position if necessary, as he has plenty of experience in his career playing there. Even more radical, you could play Nisbet as a 10. You know, as a shadow striker? Which actually worked for a period of time, switching around with Pape Habib Gueye?
The Transfer Model
No manager in the club’s history has gotten the same backing as Jimmy Thelin, he deserved it.
Aberdeen signed the following in this transfer window. Nick Suman, Emmanuel Gyamfi, Nicolas Milanovic, Kusini Yengi, Kjartan Kjartansson, Kenan Bilaovic, Adil Aouchiche, Alfie Dorrington, Stuart Armstrong, Jesper Karlsson, Kevin Nisbet, Marko Lazetić, and Mitchel Frame. This is a financial outlay of most likely near £2,000,000, even more so if you include loan fees. This makes the current form look even more embarrassing than it already is.
For such an outlay of expenses, you’d think Aberdeen would be in the top six comfortably at the very least. Seeing how vulnerable Celtic and Rangers are at the moment makes this even worse. A Premiership heading to Gorgie would make my blood boil, my head would be on Mars and I would be jealous for the rest of my life. Nobody wants that to happen, except the West of Edinburgh and the surrounding Lothian.
From a business standpoint, I totally understand why the Dons signed so many young players. Arguably, the Dons have been the best in Scotland in the last five years at buying cheap and selling for a healthy fee, but from a coaching standpoint you really need to find a balance of experience. To give the club credit, that is exactly what Jimmy and his staff did on Deadline Day, they brought in experienced players such as former loanee Kevin Nisbet and Aberdonian native Stuart Armstrong to the club, as well as his old Elfsborg pal Jesper Karlsson on loan from Bologna, who still looks a real coup for the North East side, but the fact they left it so late to fix that glaring hole says a lot and has drawn plenty criticism from the fans.
Did the early start force Aberdeen to act? Probably, but I do not blame the club for acting in that way at all. Not everything in life will go to plan, so an emergency divergence of some kind is fine enough, but their planned signings have been horrific.
Kusini Yengi cannot find the target even if it hits him in the face. Adil Aouchiche showed promise originally, but is clearly not a good fit for Scotland and some signings we have “tracked for years” like Kjartansson haven’t even made a single appearance yet, despite being the sort of player we are crying for at the moment in midfield.
Shakhtar and Dundee: A Change In the Red Sea Tide?
This was an article I have had in the wings for a long time due to circumstances out of my own control, you can probably tell it’s an edit of a rant I wanted to release in a cathartic scream to the outside world, but last week’s performances against Shakhtar Donetsk and Dundee signalled a few things.
One, with confidence, this team thrives. Two, Jimmy Thelin proved that he can adapt his system to different formations. Three, some of our transfers look to be real feats of business and four, the desire in this squad is still burning.
Jesper Karlsson, Emmanuel Gyamfi and Stuart Armstrong ran the show from the left-hand side of a 3-5-2.
Each goal involved a new signing of Thelin’s. Karlsson scored a penalty, the hot but mostly cold so far Adil Aouchiche scored an “interesting” dragged goal from the outside of his foot, as well as on his backside. Gyamfi scored his first professional goal, as he finished off his own passing move after a sumptuous low cross from Armstrong found his weaker right foot, and the aforementioned Jesper Karlsson scored one of the best goals I have ever seen live. He left three defenders huffing and puffing due to his impressive close-touch dribbling inside the box, and a fourth defender unable to block his shot, resulting in a top corner beauty.
Every single one of the Aberdeen players on the park looked like their old selves, or finally showed the crowd their true talents. Alexander Jensen, whom I heavily criticised in this article quietly had a stormer, showing a defensive acumen and impressive offensive ability that he showed last season, getting passed his man more often than not and thrashing in decent crosses for the first time this season. Shinnie put in a classic performance, winning 80% of his duels in midfield and putting in an impressive 89% pass succession rate. Nilsen had an assured performance coming off the bench, and Topi Keskinen was a constant threat when he was introduced into the fray. It was like I telepathically communicated with Jimmy, he knew my concerns and proceeded to shut me up.
Good, the fact I wanted him sacked a week ago made me feel sick. I want it to desperately work for the cup-winning Swede, I will forever adore him as a human being, a manager (despite my criticism in this piece) and for giving me the best memories of my life back in May.
I will however, try not to get carried away. A big test awaits next week in Paisley against St Mirren, in a match that could make or break this renewed but wary optimism surrounding the club.
