Aberdeen must get back to basics after their comedy capers against Motherwell at the weekend.
I could not believe what I was watching as I saw a Dons defence, which had given cause for optimism in the previous games, produce a farcical display in the 3-2 loss against the Steelmen.
It seemed as if it was one mistake after another with moments ranging from full-backs slipping to centre-halves seemingly falling asleep or ball watching.
It was great entertainment for the neutral, but for the watching Dons supporters and Aberdeen manager Jim Goodwin there was little to laugh about.
As shots of reality following the 4-1 win against St Mirren go, this was a double dose for the Dons.
Liam Scales and Anthony Stewart have looked so good together, but the central defensive partnership was broken up for most of the game on Saturday with Scales deployed at left-back in the absence of the injured Hayden Coulson.
The resulting switch meant Ross McCrorie dropped back to partner his captain in central defence.
The positional changes did not go well.
Calamitous goals conceded
For Well’s opener from Blair Spittal, Scales failed to stop the cross, while Jayden Richardson slipped as the ball came into the box .
Stewart headed nothing but fresh air in attempting deal with the corner delivery for the visitors’ second, while Callum Slattery, who was standing by Kelle Roos, had nobody near him as he moved along the line to score at the back post.
The third goal summed up the wretched display with McCrorie beaten twice, once in the air and then by failing to cut out the through-ball. Richardson’s failure to follow-up Spittal’s shot which allowed Kevin van Veen to run in unchallenged to head home the rebound completed a horrible passage of play for the watching manager.
Miovski header was good – but get McCrorie back in midfield
The only positive from an afternoon to forget for the Dons was another goal for Bojan Miovski.
The striker is clearly playing with confidence as he showed by attempting to chip the ball over the advancing Well goalkeeper when it was 0-0.
He did not let that missed chance affect him as he hauled his side level before half-time with a terrific header.
But, overall, it is clear there are lessons to be learned from Saturday in terms of shape, communication and concentration.
All three aspects have to be better for this weekend’s trip to Perth to face St Johnstone.
The first decision I would be making would be restoring McCrorie to midfield permanently. His aggression and energy was badly missed in midfield.
I’d also be restoring the Scales-Stewart partnership as soon as possible, too. They have combined well and the defence was markedly poorer for splitting them up at the weekend.
County need to get season up and running
Ross County’s season has started in eerily similar fashion to the previous one as they prop up the Scottish Premiership after three matches.
It has been a tough start for Malky Mackay’s side with matches against Hearts and Celtic, but they will be disappointed at missing a chance to get some points on the board at St Mirren on Saturday.
The Staggies went 10 games without a win to start last season and, while I don’t expect that to happen this time round, it is important the team gets their campaign up and running.
St Mirren have held the upper hand against County in recent meetings and they claimed another win on Saturday after being given a helping hand.
I take nothing away from Richard Tait as his goal was a brilliant strike, but County had numerous chances to clear the danger in the build-up to the goal and failed to take any of them.
An important fixture lies ahead this weekend when Mackay and his players welcome Kilmarnock to Dingwall.
Killie will be bristling from their 5-0 loss to Celtic at Rugby Park on Sunday and I expect former Dons boss Derek McInnes will be expecting a reaction from his side in the Highlands.
Time for Samuels to lead the line for Caley Jags
Austin Samuels has shown he is ready to lead the line for Caley Thistle.
The former Wolves striker, who had an uneventful spell on loan at Aberdeen in the first half of last season, showed what he can bring to the team as he capped a fine display with two goals in the 4-1 win against Cove Rangers on Saturday.
I watched Samuels play out wide against Queen’s Park and he clearly didn’t enjoy the experience.
The contrast between that player and the one whose pace stretched the Cove backline on Saturday was stark.
The supporting cast at Inverness are more than capable of getting the best out of Samuels, too.
Billy Mckay revelled in the extra responsibility of being captain in the absence of Danny Devine, while Aaron Doran looked like the player of old as he produced an excellent display.
Both players were right up for it and Cove were overwhelmed.
Jim McIntyre’s side came back into the game briefly when they reduced the deficit to 2-1, but Inverness settled after their minor wobble and went on to win the game comfortably.
They should be heading to Partick on Friday night full of confidence on the back of their display on Saturday.
