The demands are so high but McInnes’ zest for success is unquenchable
ABERDEEN may have been some way short of crisis point but the relief in Derek McInnes’ voice was palpable. After four games without a win he badly needed a result. Many would have been betting against his team facing a Kilmarnock side resurgent and thriving under the sound management of Steve Clarke.
Progression to the Scottish Cup semi-finals was a fraught, nerve-shredding exercise that required a penalty shoot-out at an unusually raucous Rugby Park.
‘I think we have been searching for a big result for a while,’ admitted McInnes. ‘When we win games it’s expected. When we don’t people say: “What’s going on there?”’
This season was always going to be difficult.
McInnes’ fifth full campaign in the job required a systematic team rebuild and he has not been wholly successful in securing replacements for the likes of Jonny Hayes and former captain Ryan Jack.
Niall McGinn, Ash Taylor and Peter Pawlett also left after a season in which the team finished runnersup to Celtic in all three domestic competitions. The feeling of what might have been was most keenly felt in the Scottish Cup final, which was decided by a piece of individual brilliance in stoppage-time.
McInnes has never shied away from his assertion that he gauges success for Aberdeen in terms of trophies. And with only a League Cup to show from his tenure to date, he badly needed another return to Hampden to keep his plan on track.
‘We were a pass away from winning the Scottish Cup last year. Between Kenny (McLean) and Jonny it was inches. Getting to that point was a combination of planning, building and keeping players. And there was a natural parting of the ways with half of my outfield team leaving.
‘This is this squad’s first year. It was a rebuilding job in the summer. We have remained competitive. This is our sixth semi-final in five years. We are going for our third final in two years.’
McInnes himself considered leaving last summer but, after taking time to mull over an offer from Sunderland, he elected to stay on the proviso that he was backed by the Pittodrie board.
With £1.3million banked by the sale of Hayes to Celtic, money was made available to fund an extensive recruitment drive.
On paper, the influx of players looked promising. Greg Stewart and Gary Mackay-Steven arrived to provide fresh options on the flanks and Stevie May was purchased to provide striking competition for Adam Rooney.
Kari Arnason, a pillar of the Iceland team that made it to the last eight of Euro 2016, was brought back to the club, as was Ryan Christie on a second loan spell from Celtic.
Yet for all McInnes’ talk of a new team, only two of Tuesday’s starting XI were not at the club last season.
Stewart, May and Arnason all started on the bench in midweek and they were joined by Dominic Ball and Chidi Nwakali, who were also recruited to improve the side. McGinn, brought back after an unhappy spell in South Korea, started but has yet to rediscover top form.
‘This is the start of a new squad,’ insists McInnes. ‘We are building and I am learning about my players every day and in different circumstances.
‘I learned a lot about them against Kilmarnock and they need to learn about us and the demands of the club. The intention is to improve as we go along, as we have in my time
here.’ McInnes’ commitment to Aberdeen cannot be doubted. After turning down significant money to leave for Sunderland, he then resisted the emotional pull of a return to Rangers when Dave King came calling a few weeks after the sacking of Pedro Caixinha. Contrary to the inference of a crass statement from Ibrox, McInnes didn’t rebuff Rangers because he feared the weight of the challenge. Aberdeen may not be as big in terms of support but they do operate in the pressured environment of a one-club city where the shadow of history looms large, something each of the club’s managers has had to contend with since Alex Ferguson’s reign ended over 30 years ago.
Aberdeen have proved themselves the second best team in the country over the past three years, but with Rangers improving and Hibs also back in the top division and resurgent under Neil Lennon, there is fierce competition for the runners-up spot.
In that context, it’s crucial McInnes keeps the club in contention for its first Scottish Cup since 1990.
‘I want to work for a club that has a demand and so should my players,’ contends McInnes. ‘Why just go and manage or play for clubs that don’t expect anything?
‘You buy into it. Management is tough these days anyway but when you manage a club like Aberdeen you have to take the rough with the smooth.
‘I have always tried to remain calm when we have had three or four bad results and it’s never really went beyond that. But we also never get too giddy when we have done well. The belt in the mouth is always just around the corner.
‘You’ve got to keep doing the work. Sometimes in a one-club city the demand and the quest for success is in danger of strangling and choking the players.
‘It’s not always a help to them but that’s the way it is.’
Defender Andy Considine has been a mainstay of McInnes’ team for the duration and, as a local lad, understands the demands emanating from the Pittodrie audience.
He also values the loyalty shown by his manager when he could have jumped ship.
‘It would great to repay him with some more silverware,’ says the defender. ‘The way we’ve been performing the last four or five years, we’ve put ourselves back up on that pedestal as a club.
‘Regardless that Rangers weren’t in the top division, we were up there touch-tight with Celtic for most seasons. A club like Aberdeen should be there but it’s all down to the manager.’ ‘The league has been harder this season. But the manager has recruited really well. It’s taken us longer to gel and click than we’d like but we’ll get there. ‘We’ll need the depth of squad for the Scottish Cup semi-final because we’ll be without three players — Graeme Shinnie, Kenny McLean and Shay Logan. ‘We’ve had a few bruises off Motherwell this season, so we know it’s going to be tough but we’re looking forward to it. If we turn up on the day
we should cope.’
Sometimes in a one-club city the thirst for success can strangle players