Del expects May to shine for the Dons this season
By Sean Hamilton
Derek McInnes last night backed Stevie May to shine for Aberdeen this season.
The Dons striker stuttered through his first season at Pittodrie, notching just five times in 34 appearances.
It was a low-key opening to the long-haired hit-man’s career in the Granite City.
But McInnes insists May, who endured a year of injury hell before signing at Pittodrie, can rediscover the scoring touch that propelled him to stardom.
“Having spoken to Stevie often enough, I think there’s an understanding between us,” said the Dons gaffer.
“With the injury he had before joining us, it was important for him to get himself to a club and play the amount of games he played last season.
“Hopefully now he’s settled in – and having just got married in the summer – he has that focus to be the player he’s capable of being.
“That means being a goalscorer and an infectious, spontaneous striker.
“There was certainly loads of effort from Stevie last season.
“But it was maybe unrealistic of us to expect him to be as good as he’s capable of being right away.
May missed 15 months of football after suffering a horrendous knee injury while playing for Preston North End in November, 2015.
The former St Johnstone and Sheffield Wednesday star was warned he may never play again, but fought his way back to fitness.
Now his manager wants him to fight his way back onto the goal trail.
“I can empathise with him, because I had injuries during my career. But I’ve also got to provoke him,” said McInnes.
“He’s got to recognise his strengths and his qualities, so I’ll keep reminding him what he’s good at.
“That means being more instinctive. “Stevie’s capable of that – I’ve known him since he was 14 – and it’s our job to help him get back to it.
“There’s no doubt in my mind he can get there. I believe in Stevie, and we’re all hoping that we’ll see more of what he’s capable of this season.
“He worked hard last year, he played his part, he scored some very good goals, he assisted in plenty, he moved defenders about – that’s never been in question.
“We just want him to enjoy hitting the back of the net more often, so we want him to be a wee bit more selfish.”
May’s fellow-striker Adam Rooney has been the Dons’ top scorer throughout McInnes’ time at the club.
But last season the Irishman found himself used more sparingly than before.
He was linked with an unlikely move to Dundee United a fortnight ago.
But McInnes insists that, like May, Rooney can play a key role in the campaign ahead.
“Adam is part of my plans – absolutely,” he said.
“He’s got two years left here under contract, and he’s a player I’ve got a lot of time for.
“We’ve got a good history together, and we’ve worked closely.
“As long as I’m here and Adam wants to be here, he’ll be here.
“It’s a case, for Adam, of looking for improvements, and there are certain things we’re looking for from him.
“But ultimately, when he’s at his best, he’s being instinctive and getting goals.
“He has maybe, in part, suffered from the way teams are setting up.
“We saw more back threes last season than we’ve seen for a long time in the Scottish league.
“That means our wide players are more confronted by wing- backs rather than fullbacks, which makes it more difficult to get up the pitch without engaging your striker.
“The challenge for Adam, Stevie and everybody within the club, is to keep working hard, keep looking for improvements, and forcing your way in every week.”
Having lost key men like Kenny McLean, Ryan Christie and Anthony O’Connor, recruitment is high on McInnes’ agenda this summer.
It’s something he is determined to get right after holding his hands up to weaknesses in last season’s efforts.
And he is once again scanning the loan market to bolster his options ahead of the big kick-off.
“In an ideal world, you’d always want to sign your own players,” he said.
“That’s always what we’ll try and do first. “But we’ll try and look at every avenue to try and get the right players.
“The loan market bridges the gap for us. “Guys like Michael Hector, Danny Ward, James Maddison.
“These boys were all on wages we couldn’t pay, but the loan system allowed us to get them.
“I don’t think any of us would be too surprised if that’s an avenue we go down again.”