Scott Brown used to be the man the Aberdeen fans loved to hate.
As Celtic captain, the combative midfielder led the Hoops to 22 trophies, including an unprecedented quadruple treble.
Whichever away ground he visited in Scotland, Brown revelled in playing the part of the pantomime villain as the all-conquering Celtic captain, especially at Ibrox against rivals Rangers.
When Aberdeen announced Brown had signed a pre-contract agreement to move to Pittodrie as a player-coach, opinion was initially split among the Dons support on their impending arrival.
But after being at the heart of another impressive Aberdeen showing against the Gers, there must be few doubters remaining.
Stephen Glass’ hope was that recruting a player with Brown’s winning mindset would rub off on the rest of his squad.
While Aberdeen endured a stuttering start to the 2021-22 campaign, Brown has already stamped his mark on the Dons team, particularly in the games against Rangers.
The Reds lost all four league games against the Ibrox side last term, scoring only once and conceding 11 times.
The two encounters with Rangers this season have already been a drastic improvement.
Only a late penalty denied the Dons a rare win at Ibrox in October when Brown – deployed as a makeshift centre-half due to an injury crisis – made a scoring contribution in a man of the match display.
The Dons left Ibrox bitterly disappointed to have only taken a point after a controversial late spot-kick earned Rangers an ill-deserved 2-2 draw.
🗣️"Scott is good at the noise up. There is a bit of history there."
Neil Lennon was in the Sky Sports News studio and had this to say when Ryan Kent was sent off at Pittodrie👇 pic.twitter.com/Lv7jtq7Jvu
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) January 18, 2022
On Tuesday at Pittodrie the 36-year-old was again in the thick of the action.
The ex-Scotland captain ensured that Rangers – who had won nine league games on the bounce since drawing with the Dons – never settled.
He made sure at every occasion that it was going to be an uncomfortable 90 minutes for his Rangers opponents.
Under Steven Gerrard, the Ibrox side often found life too easy against the Dons and enjoyed large swathes of possession.
That didn’t happen on Tuesday with Brown proving his worth with some vital interceptions and well-timed tackles as well as a few heated altercations.
His run-ins with Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent, which culminated in Kent being shown a red card, showed the Dons weren’t to be treated lightly on their own patch and helped keep the atmosphere inside Pittodrie crackling.
The Rangers support were quick to question Brown’s involvement in Kent’s second bookable offence and whether it merited a dismissal.
Unsurprisingly, the Dons fans lapped up the moment, especially when Brown pointed Kent in the direction of the tunnel to the changing rooms as he trudged off the pitch.
Football fans often talk about the players they loathe but would gladly have in their team in a heartbeat.
It is a well-worn cliché but Brown fits the mould perfectly.
He has quickly won over the Aberdeen support but he will be determined to play his part in a more successful second half of the season.
The Dons – a team in transition with a new coaching team and players – struggled to get going in the first half of the campaign but there were glimpses it was all starting to click in December with four wins from five games.
©️ Our captain, Scott Brown. pic.twitter.com/bZo0nnYUhC
— Aberdeen FC (@AberdeenFC) January 18, 2022
When Brown joined the Dons in the summer he made clear his desire to bring silverware to the club.
He spoke highly of the Dons side that had pushed his Celtic teams close in cup competitions over the years but just fell short at the final hurdle.
His hope was by being on the other side he could help make the difference.
Aberdeen kick off their Scottish Cup bid with a home tie against Edinburgh City on Saturday.
The Dons will hope it is the start of a journey that ends with glory at Hampden at the end of the season.
Going toe to toe with league leaders Rangers will give the Dons and Brown confidence they can make that dream a reality.
