Lewis wants Aberdeen to take their Sporting chance
NOBODY knows when — or even if — those big, boisterous, beautifully barmy European nights will return to Pittodrie. But Aberdeen’s players are perfectly entitled to dream. And to use the possibility of enjoying those special occasions as a spur for Europa League progress.
If they can just get past Viking Stavanger in Norway on Thursday, then somehow sneak past Sporting in Lisbon… well, you never know.
The prospect of fans attending group games in proper numbers, not just the few hundred so far afforded entry for ‘test events’, represents the ultimate goal.
Skipper and goalkeeper Joe Lewis, currently playing his part on the home front after the Dons’ first five-game winning streak in five years, said: ‘European football is something which attracted me to the club.
‘And, while it is a shame the fans can’t be in the stadium, those nights are great to be involved in.
‘I know the supporters are watching us on TV. They will be feeling really frustrated they can’t be there. But we want to keep that feelgood factor around the place for as long as we can.
‘And, once supporters are allowed back and when it’s possible to fill the stadium, we can get the fans behind us.
‘No one is getting carried away after the last few results. But there’s certainly a lot of positivity around the training ground at the moment.’
Aberdeen will be flying solo on the trip to Norway, with no outsiders — supporters or even media — allowed to travel because of quarantine rules.
Up against them will be a free-scoring Viking side who have hit the net 15 times in their last five games, including Saturday’s 5-3 win at Kristiansund.
Dons boss Derek McInnes is under no illusions about the scale of the challenge facing his men, saying: ‘It is going to be a tough game on a plastic pitch against a capable side. But it’s why we look forward to Europe. We look forward to testing ourselves.
‘And the motivation for both teams is the opportunity to go to Portugal and take on Sporting Lisbon, which is something really worth working for.
‘We’ll get a good handle on Viking this week but there will be no surprises come kick-off and we’ll try to get the job done over there. They play 4-3-3, with a one and a two in midfield and they have good attacking players.
‘They will be quite expansive with their approach and they like to play. They have a young backline but, having looked at the reports from my recruitment team who have watched them in depth, they are a team who make the game open and have a real attacking threat.
‘It’s important we get the balance right between attacking and defending. It will be two decent teams against each other and the prize is clear. They had a good result against Molde recently (a 3-2 win), so their confidence will be high.’
Viking head coach Bjorne Berntsen has limited experience of Scottish opposition, having been a member of the Stavanger side who faced up to Dundee United in the UEFA Cup back in the early rounds of the 1982-83 tournament.
United won 3-1 away and played out a 0-0 draw at home in the second leg.
And he reckons this match is a significant one given that Scotland and Norway could meet each other in a Euro 2020 play-off final if they can get past Israel and Serbia respectively.
‘There will be a lot of interest in another Norway v Scotland game, so it’s disappointing no fans will be here,’ he said.
‘There are links between Aberdeen and Stavanger because of the oil so a lot of people from Scotland come here to work.
‘It is good the competition is on because, for a while, we did worry European football wouldn’t take place this season.
‘But football without supporters is not the same and I am sure Aberdeen would have expected to bring a lot of fans to the game if they were allowed.
‘That is just where we are at the moment but it’s disappointing.
‘We are glad to be at home but we have to make that count because in nearly every league the advantage is lower than it used to be.
‘The fans lift the team when they are there, being noisy adds an edge to the team and gives the players that extra boost. We were very happy to get a home draw because we didn’t want to go to Pittodrie — but we have to make it work to our advantage.’