The Famous Aberdeen - Season 2022/23

[kingjoey]

3 minutes ago, Bob Mahelp said:

I said that today was dreadful because we were passive, and offered absolutely zilch going forward. 

We didn't lose 9-0 but it was still a dreadful performance for an Aberdeen side that is supposed to improve under the current manager. 

The other stuff you've posted is absolutely rose tinted. 

Are you actuslly saying that for the 8 games out of 15 that we've lost this season, we've somehow been unlucky, or there's a reason for each loss, or there's an excuse for it all? 

I'm not pessimistic, I'm realistic. 

Our current form is putting us on track to get 38 points from this season. 

That's around, or just above, relegation form. 

At what point do we start actually recognising that out of interest? 

Now, next week, January, or May? 

 

I never once used “unlucky”, although the winner today could quite justifiably be described as such. My gripe with your post is that you described our performances as dreadful, dreadful, dreadful, dreadful.....dreadful. Having watched all of our matches this season, as you may well have as well, the only one where we truly poor for most of the game was against St Johnstone at home. Today wasn’t great and felt that we did ok in the first half, but did virtually nothing second half, although we did defend reasonably well. In most games we’ve had spells of domination, failed to put our chances away and then made individual mistakes to lose goals. You’re right, obviously, that if we keep losing matches at the rate we are just now we will be in a relegation fight, but I don’t feel we are yet. Ask me again at the winter break.

[Dons_1988]

23 minutes ago, kingjoey said:

I know that you are one of the more pessimistic posters on here and that you are desperate for Glass to be recycled, but to say that our performances have been dreadful, dreadful, dreadful, dreadful.....dreadful is utter pish. The results have indeed been dreadful in most cases but not the performances. Individual mistakes, quite a few of them, have been at the root of the results, either in defence or in front of goal. I thought that we defended better today than we have done for some time with players getting closed down and loads of blocks being put in, and no matter what you say about Hayes clearance the winning goal was a total fluke, whether people thought it was coming or not.

I don’t really buy into this. I think the narrative that we’re playing but have been unlucky is very dangerous actually. I really haven’t seen it. 

[kingjoey]

12 minutes ago, Bob Mahelp said:

I live that word 'transition'. 

It implies an absolute certainty that we're somehow in a a bad spell between 2 good spells. 

A bit like Aberdeen under McGhee was a 'transition' between Alex Ferguson and the 2014 Mcinnes side. 

 

 

You’re giving no credit to Alex Smith’s fabulous team?

[kingjoey]

1 minute ago, Dons_1988 said:

I don’t really buy into this. I think the narrative that we’re playing but have been unlucky is very dangerous actually. I really haven’t seen it. 

Again, never said we have been unlucky as such, but you haven’t seen us playing well? Really?

[DukDukGoose]

12 minutes ago, Bob Mahelp said:

I live that word 'transition'. 

It implies an absolute certainty that we're somehow in a a bad spell between 2 good spells. 

A bit like Aberdeen under McGhee was a 'transition' between Alex Ferguson and the 2014 Mcinnes side. 

 

 

No. It's a transitional season because the last manager cobbled together a poor squad which needed an overhaul. The new manager was also instructed to make use of the youth squad which was largely neglected.

Whether Glass leaves in January or May, he's almost certainly leaving the squad in a better place that it was when he inherited it.

[Dons_1988]

2 minutes ago, kingjoey said:

Again, never said we have been unlucky as such, but you haven’t seen us playing well? Really?

If we ran through the games that we’ve lost I don’t think I’d identify a good performance in there. We’ve played well at times overall but we’ve tended to take something from those games. 

[DukDukGoose]

4 minutes ago, Dons_1988 said:

I don’t really buy into this. I think the narrative that we’re playing but have been unlucky is very dangerous actually. I really haven’t seen it. 

There's definitely been an element of bad luck. It's not often you see every defensive mistake be punished, along with goals being cleared off the line almost every week.

Unfortunately there's a lot of tactical naivety to go along with it. 

[Guest Bob Mahelp]

16 minutes ago, kingjoey said:

I never once used “unlucky”, although the winner today could quite justifiably be described as such. My gripe with your post is that you described our performances as dreadful, dreadful, dreadful, dreadful.....dreadful. Having watched all of our matches this season, as you may well have as well, the only one where we truly poor for most of the game was against St Johnstone at home. Today wasn’t great and felt that we did ok in the first half, but did virtually nothing second half, although we did defend reasonably well. In most games we’ve had spells of domination, failed to put our chances away and then made individual mistakes to lose goals. You’re right, obviously, that if we keep losing matches at the rate we are just now we will be in a relegation fight, but I don’t feel we are yet. Ask me again at the winter break.

I said we were 'dreadful, dreadful, dreadful (repeat ad infinitum)' in reference to today's game. Not the whole season. 

This is the salient point. Because we're not losing 5-0 every game, and in fact we're losing almost every game by no more than a goal, it gives Glass an element of protection...fans will continue to say, 'ach it's not that bad'. 

When it fact it is. 

We're not losing games because were unlucky, or because of individual errors (a current favourite). 

We're losing games because consistently, we're not very good. 

[Guest Bob Mahelp]

13 minutes ago, Merkland Red said:

There's definitely been an element of bad luck. It's not often you see every defensive mistake be punished, along with goals being cleared off the line almost every week.

Unfortunately there's a lot of tactical naivety to go along with it. 

I haven't seen this much bad luck since the Mark McGhee side at Celtic Park. 

Now that was really unlucky. 

[kingjoey]

13 minutes ago, Dons_1988 said:

If we ran through the games that we’ve lost I don’t think I’d identify a good performance in there. We’ve played well at times overall but we’ve tended to take something from those games. 

I take it that you’re considering that it only counts as a good performance if it lasts for 90 minutes, and if that’s your parameter than I agree with you. However, I’ve enjoyed parts of loads of games that we’ve lost or failed to win this season, and that’s where we differ. 

[kingjoey]

3 minutes ago, Bob Mahelp said:

I haven't seen this much bad luck since the Mark McGhee side at Celtic Park. 

Now that was really unlucky. 

One of the things that I remember from that time, is that on the midweek following the 9-0 we played Caley at home and the Caley fans were singing “You’re not famous anymore...”. Just remember thinking to myself, “how wrong can you be, after losing 9-0 we were probably more famous than we had been for years.”

[DrewDon]

Have we considered getting Dave on Sportsound tomorrow night? 

[Bogbrush1903]

Which ever way you polish it, the league table says we're a team in decline. A decline which began in earnest when Cormack and McInnes started working together.

Glass is symptom of the issue but not the root cause. Dave Cormack is a man who thinks he has all the answers but if he doesn't take a step back then we're going to be in trouble soon enough.

I don't think Glass is the answer but who is signing these players? I don't think it's the manager. Cormack basically said as much when he discussed the managerial recruitment process (which, of course, amounted to shooing in Glass).

Something feels wrong about the organisational structure at the club.

The December matches will give us a better idea if we're going to be in a relegation battle this or season, or if we'll have to wait until next season but I think it's valid to be concerned at the direction the Dons are going in under Dave Cormack.

[scottorae]

No. It's a transitional season because the last manager cobbled together a poor squad which needed an overhaul. The new manager was also instructed to make use of the youth squad which was largely neglected.
Whether Glass leaves in January or May, he's almost certainly leaving the squad in a better place that it was when he inherited it.

He’s certainly been backed. I’m staggered at the scatter gun nature of the recruitment. We’ve got loads of guys getting paid a decent wedge and doing absolutely nothing.

JET hasn’t played in about 2 months. If we want to play a high tempo press there is no one less suitable. Who on earth was scouting him?

Longstaff looks dreadful, lightweight and slow. And utterly bereft of confidence.

Jenks was bombed out for a few months due to St Mirren but now seems to be the go to guy off the bench now

Samuels hasn’t had a run, again been getting splinters on the bench

Bates is an expensive signing that I’m not sure will ever pay off - although I thought he was decent today.

[DrewDon]

I think we signed Emmanuel-Thomas because he was the best player on the park in Glass's first game in the dugout, basically. Bit like when McInnes seemed to be signing mediocre players because they did well against us, like Main. I thought he would at very least be a useful squad player when I first saw him against Hacken, but unfortunately it hasn't turned out like that. I thought we might start using him as an extra physical threat from the bench to occupy defenders in the final third when we were chasing games, but that hasn't really happened either. 

I don't think I have ever been as wrong about an Aberdeen player as I have been about Longstaff. I thought, given that he had some Premier League experience under his belt and came up here with broadly good reviews, he would be an important player for us. I don't know whether he was signed on the assumption that we would lose Ferguson, but if he couldn't get any minutes today with Brown and McGeouch both going off injured and Ojo suspended then it's probably game over for him.

[BrendanGalloway]

12 minutes ago, DrewDon said:

I think we signed Emmanuel-Thomas because he was the best player on the park in Glass's first game in the dugout, basically. Bit like when McInnes seemed to be signing mediocre players because they did well against us, like Main. I thought he would at very least be a useful squad player when I first saw him against Hacken, but unfortunately it hasn't turned out like that. I thought we might start using him as an extra physical threat from the bench to occupy defenders in the final third when we were chasing games, but that hasn't really happened either. 

I don't think I have ever been as wrong about an Aberdeen player as I have been about Longstaff. I thought, given that he had some Premier League experience under his belt and came up here with broadly good reviews, he would be an important player for us. I don't know whether he was signed on the assumption that we would lose Ferguson, but if he couldn't get any minutes today with Brown and McGeouch both going off injured and Ojo suspended then it's probably game over for him.

Probably the biggest disappointment in recent memory if not ever? I too thought he would be a bit of a stand out...

[Dons_1988]

12 hours ago, kingjoey said:

I take it that you’re considering that it only counts as a good performance if it lasts for 90 minutes, and if that’s your parameter than I agree with you. However, I’ve enjoyed parts of loads of games that we’ve lost or failed to win this season, and that’s where we differ. 

I wouldn’t say it needs to be 90 minutes but it needs to be more than 20 minutes here and there. 

I think first 20 v Motherwell at home was good but we faded away, 20 minutes against st Mirren maybe? Struggling to think of much more examples. 

[Guest Bob Mahelp]

12 hours ago, Leith Green said:

100% right, Aberdeen are not even in the same ballpark.

Hibs finished 2nd bottom and were relegated with 35 points. Aberdeen this season are on target this season to get 38 points. 

I don't really care that on paper Aberdeen's squad now looks better than Hibs' of 2014....the results after 15 games are pretty much the same. 

Just as a comparison, Kilmarnock were relegated last season with 36 points. 

AS I've pointed out, I'm not stating that Aberdeen WILL be relegated. I'm saying that our results are those of a side that are heading for a relegation battle. 

I think that it's important to recognise that fact now, rather in April. 

 

 

[kingjoey]

20 minutes ago, Bob Mahelp said:

Hibs finished 2nd bottom and were relegated with 35 points. Aberdeen this season are on target this season to get 38 points. 

I don't really care that on paper Aberdeen's squad now looks better than Hibs' of 2014....the results after 15 games are pretty much the same. 

Just as a comparison, Kilmarnock were relegated last season with 36 points. 

AS I've pointed out, I'm not stating that Aberdeen WILL be relegated. I'm saying that our results are those of a side that are heading for a relegation battle. 

I think that it's important to recognise that fact now, rather in April. 

 

 

I don’t think anyone would be waiting until April. Personally I don’t think we’re in a relegation fight at the moment, but things will be a lot clearer for the Glass half full and the Glass half empty camps at the winter break. Huge December for Aberdeen coming up.

[Guest Bob Mahelp]

4 minutes ago, kingjoey said:

I don’t think anyone would be waiting until April. Personally I don’t think we’re in a relegation fight at the moment, but things will be a lot clearer for the Glass half full and the Glass half empty camps at the winter break. Huge December for Aberdeen coming up.

The games over the next 5 days are vital. 4 points is the minimum we need from Livi and St Mirren. 

I know that we've been cursed with defensive injuries, but 2 clean sheets in 22 games this season is absolutely killing us. That needs to be addressed before anything else.