Dons at the double for new season
ABERDEEN boss Derek McInnes has revealed he will double-up up-front this season in an effort to ease Adam Rooney’s goal burden.
McInnes has spent the summer boosting the firepower at his disposal, bringing in Jayden Stockley, Miles Storey and Wes Burns.
Stockley and Burns both struck – as did Rooney – as the Dons cruised to a 3-0 Europa League win over Ventspils last Thursday.
McInnes has already seen enough from his new recruits to suggest his side’s over-reliance on their top scorer could be at an end.
And the Reds gaffer intends to make full use of his newfound attacking riches by giving Rooney a regular strike partner.
He said: “Adam has been so important to us.
“That’s 102 or 103 games he’s played for us and scored something like 65 goals.
“But I do think I’m going to go with two strikers a lot more this season.
“I’ve been too dependent on Rooney. His injury at the start of February highlighted that.
“A club like Aberdeen should have more than one or two strikers. Other teams have four strikers.
“We now have two brilliant wide players in Jonny Hayes and Niall McGinn, we’ve got Miles Storey and Wes Burns who can play off the side and we have Rooney and Jayden Stockley, too.
“So, it’s a good six front players to choose from and they’ve all got different strengths.
“You see the physical power of Stockley and his ability to finish and we know about Rooney.
“Miles has the ability to work in behind and he’ll be a constant pest for the opposition.
“Wes has unbelievable pace, strength and motivation to do well at Aberdeen.
“You could see against Ventspils on Thursday night, Rooney and Stockley, anywhere near the penalty box, is a proper partnership.
“With the genuine pace of Storey and Burns, there are good combinations there and we’re fortunate we’ve been able to bring them in.
“Depending on the opposition and form and formation, we can go with different pairings throughout the season.
“I went with one in Europe on Thursday night but domestically we’ll go with two strikers as often as we can.
“It’s important that when we’ve got good threats we try and maximise them.”