The Dons’ first week under the guidance of Neil Warnock has come and gone with a narrow, if comprehensive, defeat at Ibrox, a run-of-the-mill Scottish Cup victory over Bonnyrigg Rose and, an at times calamitous and haphazard, six-goal thriller at home to Motherwell.
If the first couple of results were predictable enough, the midweek draw at Pittodrie proved to be anything but, starting with the new manager’s team selection.
Neil explained that Richard Jensen had called off on the morning of the game through illness, but not why he had then decided to go with two full-backs in central defence rather than reintroduce Angus MacDonald.
The team got off to a shocking start, looked unsettled and unbalanced, and by the time Angus was belatedly called from the bench, the game looked beyond them.
Given the contribution he made in the last campaign, I never understood Barry Robson’s reluctance to play the big man – he has started only five Premiership matches this season – and although he was picked against Bonnyrigg, it appears MacDonald might also have to prove himself to Warnock.
Perhaps his performance against Motherwell might have gone some way towards doing that.
With some fans having already left the stadium, the manager also threw on Luis Lopes on the half hour mark in an admission that he had got the starting line-up wrong, and the rejigged formation paid immediate dividends.
Neil deserves praise for acknowledging his mistake, and the players are due the utmost credit for the way they turned the match around.
From the moment, seconds after his introduction, the striker scored Aberdeen’s first goal, the confidence surged back into the team, and they looked likely to go on to take all three points.
They would have done had it not been for one of the most baffling VAR decisions of the season, and given some of what has gone before, that really is saying something!
In real time, like most others, I felt Bojan Miovski was clearly offside, but the first replay made it obvious it was much tighter, and a further look suggested the North Macedonian was actually onside.
Even once the blue and red lines had been drawn in, he still appeared fine. I have absolutely no idea how the fourth official came to the conclusion he did. For me, that goal should have stood.
I mentioned last week that unlike the majority of Dons fans, I had some doubts over the likely success of the Neil Warnock appointment.
I did not suggest it was doomed to failure, only that I have concerns, and that there are questions that have to be asked.
It is still far too early for the answers to be provided, but they will be game by game, and this afternoon’s encounter with Hibernian is another yardstick.
Will Neil stick with the formation which ultimately gained a deserved point against Motherwell? That would seem to make sense, but Hibs offer a different kind of threat to the Fir Park outfit, and he might well have to adopt a modified tactical approach.
I am sure he will have done his homework, and I hope it bears fruit, as Aberdeen cannot afford to see their winless Premiership run extended to seven matches.
Who will blink first in title race?
Rangers came out on top in the other midweek fixture, and although they fell a goal short of actually topping the table, the win over Ross County was further confirmation that we do now have a genuine title race this season.
The transformation under Philippe Clement has been a remarkable one, and since losing to Celtic at the end of 2023, they have reeled off six straight victories.
More than that, the style of football has improved week by week, and they carry a significant goal threat right across the side.
With the rivals not due to meet again until the start of April, both sides will be keen to keep winning ahead of that Ibrox showdown. It will be intriguing to see which, if either, blinks first during the run-in.
Right now, Celtic look the more likely to do so.
