After what has become an interminable waiting game, the Dons are, it seems, still waiting to get their man.
Despite it now being over a week since Alan Burrows announced the search had reached its “very final stages”, there has been nothing further from the club since the chief executive sat down to speak to Red TV.
The only thing that has become clear is that the Elfsborg manager Jimmy Thelin remains in the frame despite having previously ruled himself out.
I was told at the start of the week that a deal had indeed been done, and that the 46-year-old Swede would be taking over in the summer. Others were clearly hearing the same thing, and within 48 hours, everyone in Aberdeen seemed to have shared the news.
If that is true, you have to wonder why the Dons have continued to sit on it.
The quotes from the Elfsborg director, Stefan Andreasson, published by the Press and Journal on Thursday, made it clear they will do everything they can to hold on to Jimmy. The very fact he spoke that way confirms the story remains a live one; if there were nothing to it, he would have said so.
That means, right now, we have to assume Jimmy Thelin is the man Aberdeen want, but work remains to be done to secure his services. That might revolve around compensation – Thelin has a contract for another couple of years – or it might be that he has yet to be convinced this is the right move at this stage of his career.
Either way, this cannot be allowed to drag on for much longer.
The pressure at the bottom of the table was at least lifted a little last weekend with the nervy win over rivals Ross County, and with a six point advantage, and just seven games remaining, the team should have enough to move clear of any serious relegation fears.
That would be a relief, and it would mean Jimmy, or whoever is eventually appointed, will at least have a top-flight club to take over.
But, securing safety is hardly something to be celebrated, and the evidence of this season suggests yet another major, and costly, overhaul will be required in the summer.
It is to be hoped the new manager will be given sole control for agreeing potential targets, and have the final say on who he brings in. That is the only way he will have a chance of properly reviving the Dons’ fortunes.
Others will inevitably be involved in the recruitment process, but the ultimate decision has to be taken by the boss, and I would expect whoever takes over to make that clear to the board.
The manager has to focus on the here and now, his main priority being results, and avoiding another campaign at the wrong end of the table. He will not want to be signing up ‘projects’, players who have been identified as potential sell-ons, unless they fit with his plans.
His predecessors have had their fingers burned in that way, and it is something the next boss will be keen to avoid.
An accident waiting to happen
The dangers of pyrotechnics being set off inside our football stadiums was highlighted last weekend when a ten year old boy suffered facial injuries after being struck by a flare at McDiarmid Park.
The youngster only narrowly avoided losing his left eye.
I have regularly voiced my opposition to this alarming trend, warning it is a serious accident waiting to happen. What happened in Perth is further evidence of that.
Those who love their pyros will tell you they are harmless, a fantastic addition to the spectacle of the game.
They are neither.
Every time I see flames and smoke rising from a tightly-packed group of fans, I fear for their safety. It is complete and utter madness.
The time has come for clubs and the authorities to stamp down hard on this illegal practice, to stop pandering to the ‘ultras’ who bring them into grounds, and to begin issuing lifetime bans as a starting point.
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