Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Dundee can keep the Dons guessing
DUNDEE’S victory over Ross County showed they will keep Aberdeen guessing for tomorrow night’s Premiership clash.
Manager Neil McCann was delighted to see his side show they can be “a different animal” when the situation requires it.
Throughout his early tenure, Neil’s side have been known for their preference to play the ball out from the back to build attacks.
The comfortable 2-0 win i n Dingwall, though, showed the manager and the rest of the league the Dark Blues can adapt to changing situations.
Neil said: “We showed a different side to our game at Ross County because we ask them to play out from the back.
“We did that and got into areas where we could attack Ross County.
“We got our goal and then we became a different animal — we became a counter-attacking team and that’s a different side to our game.
“We’ve not shown that too often this season.”
The success in the Highlands was Dundee’s most accomplished in the Premiership so far.
They were well-deserving of the three points, although would have preferred to have wrapped up the victory long before Faissal El Bakhtaoui’s 89th-minute strike added to Mark O’Hara’s opening goal early in the first half.
“I felt really comfortable,” Neil said. “My voice after the game didn’t suggest that but you’ve got to be animated at times at the side.
“That’s the thing, you want to get to the stage where you can afford to sit down and the team works itself.
“We’re not quite there yet, so it takes a bit of coaching from myself and Graham — they’re getting there.”
The Dens Park gaffer also had heaps of well-deserved praise for the work put in by his players this season, even when results weren’t going their way.
He added: “I’ve said before that so often when results aren’t going for a team and the pressure is heaped on, no wins in five or six, you can see a team buckle or go under when you ask them to do extra work — not this group.
“They want to do it because they see they are playing good football and they see they are right on the edge.
“I honestly didn’t see any fear in them, any apprehension and on Saturday they did look a confident bunch.”