Aberdeen captain Graeme Shinnie has called on his side to find a ruthless streak after Wednesday’s 2-0 defeat by Rangers.
The Dons relinquished second place on goal difference to the Gers after suffering their third straight defeat by the Ibrox club this season and Shinnie knows his side has to find an answer after slipping up in a big game once more.
The Dons have lost all their meetings against the Old Firm this season and Shinnie realises the record must change if the Reds are to claim second place in the Scottish Premiership.
He said: “It is very frustrating and it’s been too many times I’ve sat and spoken about it. It is not good enough again.
“We need to be more demanding of each other, more clinical and more ruthless. The goals we lost were sloppy and we missed four or five great chances to score.
“We have to be more clinical at both ends. The goals we conceded are so frustrating and it gave them a lift. We had to do better with the chances we created, especially when you go to places like Ibrox.”
Aberdeen have lost five out of their last six games against Rangers and lost nine in a row to Celtic. It’s a record Shinnie knows cannot continue.
He said: “We need to take that criticism as we’ve been losing too much. Criticism comes when you don’t win football games, especially at Ibrox and Celtic Park.
“We won here last year and it was a good feeling but we’ve not been good enough this year at either ground and we need to do better.
“When you get chances in the games like this you have to take them and we haven’t. We beat St Mirren 4-1 on Saturday without playing well by being clinical and we should have been clinical at Ibrox.
“We have to be ruthless, not give teams a sniff and build on clean sheets which are vital at Ibrox or Celtic Park. We’re in a dogfight for second place. We have to pick ourselves up and go again.
“It is disappointing but we have to pick the bones out and go again and there is no bigger game now than Saturday.”
Meanwhile, goalkeeper Joe Lewis had a scan yesterday to determine the extent of the injury that forced him to be stretchered off in the Rangers game.
Initial fears were the former England under-21 international had broken his leg but the Dons clarified in a statement after the match this was not the case.