Aberdeen manager Jim Goodwin needs no reminding he has taken charge of a team which is underperforming.
After eight years of European football for the club the Dons hopes of securing European football for a ninth year in a row could be decided this weekend.
Fail to beat Ross County and Aberdeen will play out the final five post-split matches in the bottom half of the Scottish Premiership.
Even if they beat Malky Mackay’s side at Pittodrie on Saturday both clubs could meet again in the bottom half if Hibernian win the Edinburgh derby at Tynecastle.
The stakes are high, and so too is the bar for Aberdeen after a regular diet of European competition, and Goodwin knows so far his team has fallen short of expectations.
He said: “Saturday is massive as forget about top six, in my opinion Aberdeen should be a top three or four team.
“In fairness it had been consistently in Derek McInnes’ time at the club as they were always up there going for Europe.
“That’s what we need to get back to as nobody needs told that team have underperformed.”
Europe the aim if Dons can clinch top six spot
With so much at stake in every game Goodwin has kept his focus on ensuring the Dons try to meet their short-term aim of securing a top-half finish.
In the most competitive of campaigns the Dons, despite being hugely inconsistent for long spells, are only four points adrift of fourth-placed Dundee United.
The margin is redundant while the club’s top six status remains undecided but Goodwin has repeated his belief should his team secure a place in the top half after matchday 33 this weekend they will go on to secure a European spot.
Fourth place brings with it a place in the UEFA Conference League. Fifth place could be enough should Hearts, who have all but sewn up third place, reach the Scottish Cup final.
The Aberdeen manager said: “The players are an honest group who accept that and the level of expectation that’s on a club like this is far greater than what’s been shown so far.
“But we do still have an opportunity to make amends and put things right even if it’s out with our control.
“We are relying on a result going our way this weekend but we have to go in to this game trying to win.
“It’s as simple as that and if we get top six I’m confident we will get into Europe of the back of it.”
Top six has been a welcome addition to Scottish football
The fierce fight for the final positions has led to a frantic finale involving several clubs in the last month and no matter what the outcome is for his side this weekend Goodwin remains a fan of the league set-up.
He said: “I was always a big advocate of the split and I loved the play-offs.
“I spent eight years in England and enjoyed the structure of their leagues. There was always something to play for and it is important for a fan’s perspective.
“Now we have a little bit of everything going on and it’s great it is going down to the wire.”
JET fitness improving but no sign of immediate return
Regardless of Aberdeen’s post-split fate, it seems unlikely Jay Emmanuel-Thomas will play any part in the remaining games of the campaign.
The summer signing from Livingston has made 23 appearances this season but has not started a game in 2020 with the 1-0 defeat at Hibernian on December 22 the last time he was named in the starting 11.
Having made just four appearances – all from the bench – since the winter break Emmanuel-Thomas has been told he must improve his match fitness before he will be considered for first team duty.
Goodwin says the striker is making progress in his fight to improve his conditioning but is non-committal on whether he is near a level which is deemed worthy of inclusion.
The Aberdeen manager said: “The big man has been working really, really well and I must give him huge credit for that.
“He’s took on board what we’ve asked him to do after a frank and honest conversation about where he needs to get to.
“I think he realises the way we train and the demands I make of players on a match day he needs to be a certain fitness to carry that out.
“He’s working hard and doing extra which is all I can ask at the moment but whether he’s going to be involved in the weeks and months ahead you have to wait and see.”
