ON SOLID GROUND
McInnes convinced European experience will aid rejigged Dons
WHILE it would be stretching matters to suggest that Aberdeen have found themselves in a state of flux this summer, there is no question that the weeks since competitive action ceased have not been quite as orderly as in recent years.
The departure of five players, including star men Jonny Hayes and Niall McGinn, ensured Derek McInnes’ workload over the close season was significantly increased. Four players have subsequently arrived, with Motherwell’s Louis Moult (below) and former Hull City midfielder Shaun Maloney in the running to join them.
For the Aberdeen manager, the problem is obvious. While the additional two-week break his players earned by dint of finishing second in the Premiership was most welcome, ensuring a new squad gels in time for the visit of Bosnians Siroki Brijeg on Thursday is not easy.
As concerning as the unusually high turnover of players is, though, McInnes takes solace from the fact that recent events mean none of those who have remained could be thought of as green in terms of the specific demands of European competition.
The Dons have played 18 games in Europe in the past three years with Real Sociedad, Kairat Almaty and Groningen among the stellar names they have faced. Such wide-ranging experience means freezing on Thursday night seems highly unlikely.
‘The boys here have the benefit of having been involved in Europe in recent years,’ said McInnes.
‘The experience of dealing with different pitches, teams, conditions and referees will help us get the desired result.
‘We will need to bring a good level of performance to get through this initial tie.
‘I actually feel the Almaty and Maribor games were so finely poised and we were unlucky to go out, but we can take confidence from the fact we were in both ties and use that experience.’
So what of the men from Bosnia? Goran Sablic’s side finished seventh in their league last season and made it into Europe on the back of winning their domestic cup.
They lost out to Birkirkara in the first qualifying round last year, but perhaps the fact the men from Malta subsequently knocked out Hearts puts that setback in perspective.
Certainly, on the evidence of their defensively-assured goalless draw with Kazakhstan’s Ordabasy last week, the Aberdeen manager is bracing himself for the sternest of tests.
‘We split the staff up to concentrate on both teams,’ explained McInnes. ‘The Bosnians were under my remit and I was very impressed.
‘They remind me of my first Aberdeen team. They have good organisation and energy in the middle of the park, counter-attack well with quick wide players who contribute goals and have a main striker who links it all together.
‘They were very impressive across the two ties and looked comfortable in Kazakhstan. The tie was not over, but I thought they would be good enough and organised enough to go through. ‘Their striker has good size and experience and, because of the pace around about him, he is a important player for them. ‘Without talking too much about individuals, their biggest strength is their team. Ordabasy score a lot of goals in Kazakhstan, but they didn’t threaten and it was the Bosnians who looked more likely to score on the counter-attack.’
The days of Scottish football fans taking anything for granted at such junctures is long gone.
If numerous setbacks over recent seasons didn’t already speak to the alarming collective decline, the exits of Rangers and St Johnstone last week to sides from Luxembourg and Lithuania respectively hammered home the point.
McInnes has enough on his plate to make other managers’ excuses for them. But he feels the recurring theme of embarrassment at this time of the year will only continue unless serious consideration is given to taking a radically different approach.
He said: ‘There’s disappointment at Rangers at St Johnstone going out. It was a surprise, but it can happen. When you are drawn against someone because no one has heard of them, people think it is a foregone conclusion. But when you dig deeper, it becomes clear it is a bit more of a challenge.
‘Tommy Wright (Saints boss) is keen to add more players and that’s the whole issue we all face — trying to be as ready as we can after a short break.
‘It’s difficult to be proper game-ready to deal with these ties and, sometimes, it doesn’t take a lot for the performance level to dip and for a team to be knocked out.
‘We’ve had the benefit of being in a settled team, which has made the short period less of a factor, but this year is a bit different as we’re putting a new side together and trying to get it to gel as well as being game-ready.
‘But there is no doubt Rangers, St Johnstone, ourselves and even Celtic for that matter are not at 100 per cent for these ties. We hope we can build towards that and while we have got through the early rounds in the last few years bar one, every round has been difficult.
‘There is a bigger picture as to why we are not at our maximum in these games and a lot of it is down to the footballing calendar.
‘That’s not always the case as we can play teams at the same start of their season, too, but a lot of the time Scottish teams suffer.’
With just Celtic left for company in Europe, McInnes appreciates there is now a greater onus on his side to fly the saltire.
‘First and foremost we look after Aberdeen,’ he added. ‘There’s no extra responsibility to represent Scotland on us, but we certainly feel a responsibility.
‘We feel as if we have performed well enough in the past few seasons. We’ve gone out to a level of team where there is no shame, but we have to find a way of getting through those ties where they are finely balanced.’