Aberdeen reaction: Why Christian Ramirez toiled, Jim Goodwin's car walk, the Ross County miscreants

We pick out three talking points from Aberdeen’s 0-0 draw with Ross County.

Aberdeen forward Christian Ramirez tries to close down Ross County's Yan Dhanda during the 0-0 draw at Pittodrie.

Too many strikers spoil the broth

Jim Goodwin’s response to a recent lack of Aberdeen goals was to chuck in three strikers against Ross County and hope for the best. As a ploy it never really worked. In his first league start of the season, Christian Ramirez looked predictably rusty and struggled to make an impact as a No 10 behind Bojan Miovski, who has gone off the boil after a blistering start to the season. Once County had figured out the plan, they simply tweaked their own system to shut down the space, effectively rendering Ramirez ineffective. Only Luis ‘Duk’ Lopes, who played off the left in the first half and then through the middle as part of a 4-4-2, looked dangerous but more as a creator than a finisher. Aberdeen’s only goals in their last three games have been two Matty Kennedy long-range screamers. A lack of penalty box predatory prowess remains a persistent problem.

County whodunnit

Malky Mackay’s post-match bombshell that two of his players had missed the game due to a breach of club discipline, while choosing not to name them, set the hares running on who it was and what they might have done. Not even an off-the-record steer could be chiselled out of County staff, who remained tight-lipped over rumours circulating locally that the miscreants had enjoyed their Hogmanay celebrations more than they should have. Some sleuth work narrowed down the list of absentees as follows: suspended – Jack Baldwin and Owura Edwards, injured – Ben Purrington and Alex Samuel and youngsters just back from a loan spell – Matthew Wright and Adam Mackinnon. The status of brothers William Akio and Victor Loturi remained unexplained.

Gentleman Jim

He might have been under increasing pressure but there was little sign of any animosity between Jim Goodwin and the Aberdeen fans as he made the walk before the game from his car to the Pittodrie main entrance. Stopping for every photo and signing every newly-bought calendar, there was an audible squeal of delight afterwards from those young fans – and some not so young – who managed to secure a selfie or prized autograph, in contrast to the groans inside the ground at the end of the game. Pity, though, the trio of tourists who figured out too late that this was indeed the Aberdeen manager, scuttling after Goodwin just as he disappeared inside the building.