Aberdeen

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Mats Knoester is relieved to have a break in Scottish Premiership action as Aberdeen have a week to prepare for Dundee United's visit to Pittodrie.

Jimmy Thelin's squad have been balancing Premiership fixtures alongside their Conference League appearances during the week.

Now the Dons are out of Europe and have an entire week to prepare for their next league outing.

Centre-back Knoester thinks Aberdeen struggled with juggling their fixture demand.

"I think that's definitely good timing to get some more days for recovery," the 27-year-old said

"There's been players that have played a lot. If I speak for myself, I can feel it as well. So it's good to get a few more days.

"I think if you look all over Europe, apart from the really big teams with big budgets, it's always difficult to manage Europe and the league.

"You can see that in the results, most of the times the teams are struggling on the Sunday, if they have to play on a Thursday.

"But I think that's what we've shown well in the last weeks that on a Sunday, we still show up. So I think that's definitely a positive thing."

Even though Aberdeen were beginning to find their groove domestically, Thelin's men lost 3-1 at Parkhead against a struggling Celtic side last weekend.

The Dons are only a point behind Hibs above them, but only three clear of United.

"After surviving Celtic's chances at the beginning of the second half, we started to believe more and more about getting a result," Knoester added

"So a tough one to take to give it away at the end."

Second tier side Asane want Aberdeen midfielder Sivert Heltne Nilsen to return to Norway, although the move is more likely to happen at the end of the season than in January. (Daily Record), external

Glen Schreuder
Fan writer

After exiting Europe with barely a whimper in Prague, we turned up to Parkhead on Sunday with hope and, given Celtic's recent form, some expectation even though our results down there have given us little reason to be!

Sadly, a disjointed first 45 where mistakes were once again punished left us with an uphill task after Dylan Lobban was sent off. Kenan Bilalovic continued his fine form by scoring to give us hope, his performance alongside debutant Kjartan Mar Kjartansson were noticeable pass marks on an otherwise rinse and repeat of when we visit Parkhead.

Out of Europe and the league, our Scottish Cup defence can be sole focus for Jimmy Thelin and the players.

There are four games in 15 days to navigate but if we can continue to build our league performances and points we should be set to battle at the correct end of the table come the business end of the season.

Glen Schreuder can be found at Red Tinted Glasses, external

We asked for your views on after Aberdeen unbeaten Premiership run ended with a 3-1 defeat against Celtic.

Here's what some of you said:

Fred: Awful performance, it could have been 10-1. We carry no attacking threat and the defence looked really shaky. Looks like we wasted our summer transfer budget, we need to secure two good frontmen in January or the season will be a real anti-climax. Our manager looks like he is asleep most of the game, he cannot bring urgency or motivate the players. His tenure must come to an end soon!

Niall: A moment of madness from Dimitar Mitov completely ruined a real opportunity for the Dons to end their long-running dismal league record against Celtic. In the end it could have been a whole lot worse. A valiant effort from the 10-man team who just ran out of steam in the end.

Stuart: What a shock Aberdeen are the team that ends Celtic's losing streak. Mitov needs to be dropped, he consistently puts his defenders under pressure by passing out from the back and he was to blame for young Dylan Lobban getting sent off. Serious changes are needed in January. A goalkeeper, a defender, a striker and a manager.

Andy: A deserved but predictable win for Celtic. Mitov had some great saves but appears to be becoming a bit of a liability. He seems to give away a goal a game, or a player in this instance, through his poor distribution from defence. This needs to be sorted out as soon as possible.

Darryl: I was confused by our gameplan early on. We gave a fragile Celtic team a lot of confidence by giving the ball away multiple times deep in our own half. Naive! We should have been playing for territory to get Celtic on the back foot.

Euan: Aberdeen were far too keen to sit back and let Celtic dominate play. Mitov made some wonderful saves but his pass leading to Lobban's red card was ultimately our undoing. Kenan Bilalovic is a very exciting prospect and Jack Milne is getting better each game.

Ian: This is a poor Celtic team yet still we are not anywhere near them. Aberdeen have some good players but this manager hasn't got a clue how to set a team and he keeps changing the starting line-up. We need a manager who knows the Scottish game better.

Watch highlights of Wilfried Nancy's first win in charge as Celtic defeat 10-man Aberdeen 3-1 at Parkhead. (Available to UK users only)

Wilfried Nancy's much-needed first win as Celtic manager arrived in incredible fashion as late goals by Kieran Tierney and James Forrest secured a deserved victory over 10-man Aberdeen in a breathtaking Scottish Premiership encounter.

Read the match report.

Have your say.

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Aberdeen manager Jimmy Thelin: "We were on the back foot from minute one. Celtic were on top of us. We can do better, how we attack the game this way.

"Then, of course a red card. The start of the second half, we were a bit lucky. Some good saves but also we need some luck. We survived that moment.

"Kjartan [Kjartansson] and Kenan [Bilalovic] did really well in that moment and it gave us a chance to grab a point. We were disappointed after the game because we were so close."

Aberdeen will "prepare as if the best Celtic are going to turn up" when the sides meet in Glasgow on Sunday, says Nicky Devlin. (Record), external

Lawrence Shankland, 30, recalls being told by his current Hearts boss Derek McInnes he was surplus to requirements at Aberdeen and says "I don't hold grudges" and insists he "never blamed" McInnes for his Pittodrie exit. (Record), external

Read Sunday's Scottish gossip

Clive Lindsay
BBC Sport Scotland

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When Stuart Armstrong struggled for game time with Vancouver Whitecaps then was released by Sheffield Wednesday this summer after an inauspicious six months back in England's second tier, it looked like the 33-year-old's glittering career was on the wind-down.

It may be too late to resurrect hopes of adding to his 53 caps in the lead up to next summer's World Cup, but a return to hometown club Aberdeen has proved more fruitful for the former Celtic, Dundee United and Southampton midfielder.

Armstrong has provided three assists, plus one goal, in 17 appearances for the Dons, 15 of them starts and has become increasingly influential as Jimmy Thelin's side have improved their performances - and results - domestically.

He had not yet signed for the Dons when Celtic won 2-0 at Pittodrie in August, so this will be his first chance to face his former employers.

The four-time league winner with Celtic was rested as Aberdeen bowed out of the Conference League with a disappointing 3-0 defeat by Sparta Prague on Thursday and a fresh Armstrong could make all the difference as they look to cause an upset on Sunday in Glasgow.

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Does Aberdeen's season hinge on their upcoming six Premiership matches?

The Dons travel to a struggling Celtic side on Sunday before United visit on 27 December. They visit Hibs on 30 December followed by a trip to Falkirk on 3 January before back-to-back games against Rangers on 6 and 11 January.

Despite a tricky start to the season Jimmy Thelin's side are currently sixth in the Scottish Premiership table and they're joint on points with Hibs above them who have played a game more.

But Press and Journal chief sports writer Ryan Cryle believes their upcoming matches could define their season.

"I think this is going to be a pivotal time of the season," he told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"It's amazing that, given the start they had, they're on the cusp of third place. They're well in the fight for that now. It does feel they've got momentum with them.

"This Celtic game at the weekend, the big opportunity is there to win that league game and really put Celtic in a full-flung crisis mode.

"Dundee United, that's a team that are on Aberdeen's coattails, you want to hold them at arm's length. Hibs are the team that you're level on points with so you could make real strides in this upcoming period.

"It's kind of a cliche but is this the sort of run of fixtures that the whole season hinges on?"

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Celtic remain without Kelechi Iheanacho, Alistair Johnston, Callum Osmand and Marcelo Saracchi (all hamstring) along with Jota (knee) and Cameron Carter-Vickers (Achilles).

Aberdeen are missing defenders Gavin Molloy and Kristers Tobers with knee injuries.

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Aberdeen skipper Graeme Shinnie has warned that Celtic are "still dangerous" despite their miserable form.

The sides go head-to-head at Parkhead in the Premiership on Sunday as Celtic search for the first points under new manager Wilfried Nancy.

The Frenchman has lost all four of the games he has presided over - the club's worst run in 47 years - while the Dons are unbeaten in seven league matches.

"Having watched some of the games, they've had some great chances and great moments in the game," Shinnie said of Celtic.

"The Hearts game [on 7 December], in the first half I thought they were very good, could have been two or three nil up.

"Dundee United, in the first half they could have been two or three up again, they had some good chances. So they're still dangerous, they've got some top, top players and Parkhead's a tough place to go.

"But we're in good form, so we've got to look forward to it and be excited for it."

The 34-year-old's current contract expires next summer, but insists he would like to extend his stay at Pittodrie.

"I love it here," the midfielder added. "It's like home to me, so as long as they still want me then we'll see what happens.

"There's been so much going on in terms of travelling in Europe and games and everything else, we've not really had the chance [to discuss it] but I think once the games settle down then we'll have the chat.

"I don't think it'll be too difficult, it'll be one that we'll deal with pretty easily hopefully and get on with it."

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Aberdeen captain Graeme Shinnie, 34, wants to extend his contract at Pittodrie. (Press and Journal), external

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• Celtic have lost four successive matches in all competitions for the first time since January 1978 under Jock Stein. In the club's entire history, only in October 1947 and April 1953 have they ever suffered five defeats in a row.

• Celtic have scored 26 goals from 33.5 expected goals in the Scottish Premiership this season, an underperformance of -7.5. Aberdeen have scored 18 goals from 22.1 xG, an underperformance of -4.1. These are the two biggest negative xG differences of any sides in Scotland's top tier this term.

• Celtic remain unbeaten in 32 meetings with Aberdeen in all competitions (W25 D7) since a 1-0 league defeat in May 2018.

• Aberdeen have lost 35 and won just one of their past 38 league visits to Celtic (D2), going winless in their latest 12 (D2 L10).

• Since the start of October, Aberdeen have earned more points in the Premiership than any other side (23), winning seven of their 10 league games (D2 L1).

Liam McLeod
BBC Sport Scotland Commentator

Aberdeen's European campaign is over and it's difficult to glean too many positives from the experience.

The thousands of Dons supporters who travelled to the magnificent city of Prague for their meaningless final match, against a vastly superior Sparta, enjoyed their final trip of the season not knowing when they will experience continental tournament proper football again.

This season's Scottish Cup winners, or the Premiership's third-best side should one of the top two lift the cup, will start in the third qualifying round of the Europa League, meaning there is no longer the guarantee of Conference League football thanks to the embattled Scottish coefficient.

But what can Jimmy Thelin take from the campaign now that it has come to an end?

Much is being written about how disastrous it has been and in many ways it was. They finished 35th in the 36-team table, spared the ignominy of bottom spot by Dundee United's qualifying conquerors Rapid Vienna.

The errors that led to many of the 14 goals conceded in the six games were basic mistakes that haunted their campaign and they continued in Prague with all three completely avoidable. As Thelin says, they will have to learn from them.

But no matter what is said by those outside of the Granite City about the ignominy of finishing second bottom and below the likes of Lincoln Red Imps, Shelbourne and Breidablik, there is no denying the Dons were absolutely hammered by the draw.

They were paired with four of the top six and five of the top eight whereas the draw was kinder to those clubs mentioned as well as others who have qualified.

Aberdeen were massively unfortunate in that regard and that has to be taken into account when looking at the table.

The biggest missed opportunity was dropping two points to Armenians Noah, who made it through. But even they have been heavily backed financially.

Thelin and his players can now focus on domestic matters and they face a huge few weeks, starting at Celtic Park where they have only won once in their past 38 league visits. They also haven't beaten the champions in 90 minutes in 32 attempts.

Many are wondering whether the Dons can take advantage of Celtic's current tribulations, but Wilfried Nancy's team should have been out of sight by half-time in their defeat by Dundee United so this will be nothing other than a stern examination of Aberdeen's recent domestic renaissance.

Four of the next five games are on the road and the Dons' upcoming Premiership fixture list looks season-defining.

We asked for your views following Aberdeen's 3-0 defeat to Sparta Prague in their final Conference League match.

Here's what you had to say:

Ian: Progress - what progress? For 15 minutes we actually look reasonable then lose a crazy goal to an unforced error and visions of Athens coming flooding back. The same players make the same mistakes and the mental fragility reappears, In four away games in Europe we have failed to score and have only had four shots on target in these games.

Alan: You can point to the difficult fixtures but performances were not good enough. Once again we gifted goals with mistakes that are punished at this level. Overall, a disappointing campaign.

Charlie: I only saw the highlights and listened on the radio. However, it seems we were hardly in the game and the goal all came from defensive mistakes. I am concerned that the players do not seem to be learning.

Andy: Another big defeat but the truth is Aberdeen were never anywhere near ready for the challenges of European football. Final placing, 107th out of 108. If we qualify for next year I can only hope that they will be better prepared.

Steven: Eight games played in Europe and no wins. The team and manager are not at this level at present. It will be interesting to see how Aberdeen perform against the better teams in the league. We rarely play for 90 minutes and the goals conceded are too cheap.

Simon: Glorious failure. Fed up with listening to our manager repeat the same failings time after time with nothing being learnt. Team simply not good enough for the money spent. Hopefully some changes in the January transfer window.

David: Thankfully this tortuous European campaign, which we were totally unprepared for, is over! Far too much talk of improvement, which there is little evidence of, when results don't lie. A three-year project, at this pace it will take 10 years to produce anything meaningful, and not with Jimmy Thelin at the helm!

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter in Prague

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Captain Graeme Shinnie says finding more cutting edge is among the lessons Aberdeen must learn from their underwhelming Conference League campaign.

Thursday night's 3-0 defeat at Sparta Prague consigned the Dons to a second-bottom finish in the 36-team table with just two points.

Jimmy Thelin's men scored three goals in their six matches, but failed to net on their travels.

Shinnie said: "Of course you have to learn from it. You lose games but you learn from them, if you don't then you are doing something wrong.

"It is difficult, we played three of the top four [teams in the standings], the majority of the teams were in the top eight or nine so it was a really tough draw.

"We have had good spells in games with possession but sometimes teams are okay with that and they can be more dangerous when they have not got the ball.

"That is what we have found out when we have maybe given the ball away in dangerous areas and they have taken advantage of that.

"I feel like when we do have some decent momentum in games and decent control we need to be a bit more dangerous with the ball. I don't think we scored away from home and you don't give yourself a chance to win games when it is like that.

"It is when you are on top a little bit in terms of controlling with the ball you need to do more to score goals."

Aberdeen know the key to getting back to the continental stage is by continuing their good domestic form.

They are unbeaten in seven Premiership games going in to Sunday's league trip to Celtic.

Shinnie added: "Definitely we are keen to always get back in as quickly as we can.

"It is where the club always wants to be and now we have to move on from it and focus on the league season and try and get back to a position where we can qualify again."

Aberdeen finished second-bottom of the Uefa Conference League table as their disappointing campaign concluded with a three-goal loss at Sparta Prague.

Read the match report

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Aberdeen manager Jimmy Thelin said: "Congratulations to Sparta Prague for the win. We start OK before they score the first goal. After that, the game got in their direction.

"We make it really difficult for ourselves. Second half was a little bit better, but still not good enough. We didn't arrive to a shot on target. Of course the game is fair - they were better.

"In the long term, the players will grow a lot from the experience they have now.

"We have played now six opponents and five of them are top eight. The quality is there - one mistake and they punish you. The only way to grow is to learn from it and have a strong belief these players will be better next season.

"Our goal last season was to go to Europe - we did. We have played the top teams in this group phase and right now we are not in that level. We still have to grow as a club and a team to be more competitive next time.

"Some of the games - Noah at home, Strasbourg at home - were quite good games. But the difference with the quality, when mistakes are there, they have punished us. We need to decrease mistakes and be more dangerous."

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter in Prague

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Trying to gatecrash the Scotland squad for next summer's World Cup is "a big motivator" for Aberdeen striker Kevin Nisbet.

The last of Nisbet's 11 caps came as a substitute late in the second half as the Scots defeated Georgia 2-0 in a Euro qualifier at Hampden in 2023.

"Obviously the World Cup is coming up which is a big motivator for me so it is just up to myself now to go and get myself in the squad," the 28-year-old said.

"For me it is just about getting as many goals up until maybe January and then kind of looking from there.

"I have been around the squad, I have been to the Euros, so I know how good it is. The motivation is there, I have been there and it is just about me trying to get in the squad.

"To go to a World Cup would be great but right now it is just full focus on Aberdeen."

Nisbet returned to the Dons on a three-year deal from Millwall in the summer after impressing on loan last term where he netted 14 in 38 appearances.

Nisbet has scored just twice this season, both in the past six games, and believes he is finding form after a disjointed start.

Speaking before Thursday night's Conference League dead rubber away to Sparta Prague, he said: "I think I have grown into the season.

"I came off the back of a broken pre-season as well, similar to last year, and just trying to get minutes under my belt.

"I think probably the last three or four weeks I have been putting in good performances so it has been great.

"I feel I am up to speed now, I feel I can impact games more. The longer the games go on I am not as tired, not as leggy any more, so it is going to be an interesting season."

Aberdeen first-team coach Peter Leven is the bookmakers' favourite to be Kilmarnock's new manager, ahead of Livingston's David Martindale and interim boss Kris Doolan. (The Scotsman), external

Former Aberdeen manager Barry Robson, recently sacked by Raith Rovers, was pictured alongside Heart of Midlothian head coach Derek McInnes at a first-team training session at the Oriam on Wednesday. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full.