Aberdeen cup final countdown far from ideal but Jimmy Thelin has 'clear plan' to topple Celtic
Positive news on poleaxed defender as Dons prepare for Hampden showdown
As cup final countdowns go, it has been far from what might have been desired by Jimmy Thelin. The Aberdeen manager has watched his team lose four of their five top six fixtures and in the last of these defeats, against Dundee United on Saturday, he saw a valuable first-team player poleaxed by a flying seat. Thrown by one of his own team’s fans, no less.
Left-back Jack MacKenzie was left with facial injuries and a head wound that required stitches following the incident. Police Scotland said a 31-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection with reckless conduct.
Thelin has revealed MacKenzie is available for Saturday’s Scottish Gas Scottish Cup final against Celtic at Hampden Park. It is a small mercy.
Already huge underdogs ahead of Saturday’s Scottish Cup final against all conquering Celtic, there is a sense of what else can go wrong for Aberdeen, who have tended to find that fortune deserts them around such occasions in recent decades. They lost to a stoppage time winner from Celtic midfielder Tom Rogic in the final in 2017 having taken an early lead. This Scottish Cup final appearance had come after a long wait.
Cup finals of the past
The last time Aberdeen had reached the same stage of the same competition was 2000, when their hopes were effectively extinguished after goalkeeper Jim Leighton, playing his last game before retirement, was caught by Rangers striker Rod Wallace’s knee in the opening moments. With manager Ebbe Skovdahl having gambled on not including a substitute goalkeeper on the bench, striker Robbie Winters donned reserve ‘keeper Ryan Esson’s shirt and pulled on his gloves and did his damnedest to keep Aberdeen in the game. They held out until the 36th minute, when Giovanni van Bronckhorst opened the scoring, before three second half goals saw the game run away from Aberdeen.
It had been a very different story ten years earlier when the Pittodrie side last lifted the trophy. There was no goalkeeper issue to derail them as Theo Snelders more than did his job. Having kept a clean sheet in the preceding 120 minutes, with the 1990 final against Celtic having gone to extra time, the Dutchman saved Anton Rogan’s spotkick to clear the way for Brian Irvine to win the trophy for his team. It remains the last time Aberdeen, who became synonymous with the Scottish Cup in the 1980s, have won the competition.
Thelin will be very aware of all this. He will also sense the unease. The Red Army, preparing to swarm down the M90 on Saturday, are finding it hard to keep any kind of faith. It’s bad enough that a determined Celtic side gunning for another treble lie in wait. Aberdeen’s own faltering form following such a stunning start to the season where they won their first seven league games means these supporters know their side will need to come up with something very special to dispel the gloom. The actions of an idiot fan have not helped.
Positive news on Mackenzie
After Dundee United supporters invaded the pitch following the home side’s 2-1 William Hill Premiership win over the Dons, MacKenzie was caught on the face by part of a seat thrown from the section housing away fans and required treatment before and after being taken down the tunnel in a wheelchair. Thelin, speaking at Aberdeen’s pre-cup final media day, has at least relayed some good news on that front.
“Jack MacKenzie has trained on the pitch today, and he was okay,” the Swede said. “He is available for Saturday’s game. We have a strong support network, good team-mates and good staff. Jack is a strong guy, he has been performing well in the sessions. We also try to look forwards and not back. We have been taking care of him and he is doing well.”
Thelin stressed last Saturday’s incident should not reflect badly on the wider Aberdeen support.
“No matter what you do in life, if it’s football or something else, you have to feel safe in your job of course,” he said. “Incidents can happen, and it’s not okay, but it can happen. But overall if you think about the big picture, all the support we’ve had this year from the Aberdeen football family, it has been an incredible experience for me to be involved with across the year, all the emotions from the season.
“Overall it is an amazing club with amazing supporters, so sometimes incidents can happen and it’s not okay, and it could have been even worse, but if you look at the bigger picture it has been a good year in my opinion. We always have to make sure that players and staff feel safe, wherever you work you must feel safe in your job.”
Aberdeen are without the injured trio of Sivert Heltne Nilsen, Vicente Besuijen and Ester Sokler. Asked if he had picked his team to face Celtic, Thelin said: “We have a clear plan of what we’re going to do.”
Such clear sightedness will be welcome from a manager who is operating under a degree of pressure after a slump that saw his side pick up just six wins and 22 points in their last 27 league matches to slip from second to fifth place.
Saturday’s match will be the first final of Thelin’s managerial career and what he has described as “the last punch” of a season that will baffle football historians in years to come. A Scottish Cup win, the club’s first for 35 years, against a side they were beaten 5-1 by as recently as last week would be a fitting way to round off a campaign where Aberdeen have so often confounded.
“I think the Scottish Cup has a really big history, it’s a big thing, and you can feel it already around the club and around the country,” said Thelin. “It’s a big thing happening on Saturday, so we’re really excited for this moment."
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