Euro setback can give Dons a domestic boost
Ross Mccrorie admits Aberdeen blew the chance to join Celtic and Rangers in Thursday night’s Europa League play- off round.
However, their display in the 1- 0 defeat against Sporting Lisbon leaves him convinced the Dons will be the Old Firm’s main threat domestically this season.
Officially, the Scotland Under- 21 star is currently on loan from the Ibrox club as Aberdeen couldn’t afford to pay the £ 350,000 transfer fee until next summer.
By contrast, Sp or ting’s 18- year- old matchwinner, Tiago Tomas, recently signed a new contract until 2025 that includes a 60-million-euro buy-out clause.
That’s a clear indication of the financial gulf between Aberdeen and a club that recently renamed their academy after it’s most-famous graduate, Cristiano Ronaldo.
The consolation for Mccrorie was the lack of a similar-sized gap when it came to quality on the park, even though the Dons fell at the third round of qualifying for the seventh straight year.
Mccrorie said: “Sporting are a big team and a massive club, so we didn’t disgrace ourselves. But we came back frustrated we didn’t get the win.
“They had a really-strong side out, but we still felt pretty hard done by to lose because we did everything the gaffer asked of us.
“It was a missed opportunity because we created chances, even in the first half. But we just couldn’t find that extra bit of quality in the final third.
“We have to take encouragement from it coming back into the league, now we have shown we can match up against big teams like Sporting.
“They have a big budget, and they’ve gone out and bought some expensive players.
“The budget of those clubs are extortionate compared to ours, and that’s where their big advantage is.
“But we performed well against them, and if we can play like we did against Sporting, then we’ll do well in the Premiership.”
Now the immediate aim is to prove just that with a win at Dingwall this afternoon to open up a four-point lead on Ross County with two games in hand.
That would be the perfect way to bounce back from midweek disappointment and last Sunday’s shock 3- 0 home defeat against Motherwell.
The latter came shortly after news broke of central defender Scott Mckenna’s £3m sale to Nottingham Forest.
Despite that, Mccrorie insists the Scotland star’s sudden departure had nothing to do with Aberdeen’s biggest league defeat this year.
He said: “Scott was different class when he was here, and I’m buzzing for him getting his move. But the Motherwell defeat wasn’t anything to do with that.
“There were no excuses. We just were not good enough and it’s up to us to rectify that now.
“Before the Motherwell game, the defensive record had been pretty good, so we can’t look too much into it.
“We just have to look forward to Ross County now and get a reaction to the two defeats.
“We are a big club, and no matter who we come up against, we are expected to win, so that pressure is always there.
It’s a familiarity with exactly that, during more than 50 games for Rangers, that’s one reason why Derek Mcinnes was delighted to beat Hibs to Mccrorie’s signature.
Versatility is another for someone equally at home at full- back and in central defence, but who has really impressed in his preferred midfield role at Pittodrie.
Mccrorie added:“i have played in plenty of positions. But the gaffer knows I am versatile, so I can play wherever to help the team.
“I know that I’ll sometimes have to play in a different role, and I’m happy with that.
“I think I’m a midfielder but I don’t mind it. To become a better player you have to play in other roles.
“Look at Joshua Kimmich at Bayern Munich. He plays several positions.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing. I think it’s a credit to myself that I have that versatility to swap positions in the team.”