.. an Aberdeen FC season preview

A quick season preview I did for Scotzine.com from an Aberdeen FC point of view. It's been a while since I've written anything for insideleft.net, or even about football in general so it took a wee while to get back into the swing of things. See what you think. More stuff after the click ..

1. Who do you think will win the league this season?
My money is on Celtic this season. For all his character flaws (and he has quite a few) Lennon will motivate and push and drag that team across the finishing line.

2. Other than your side, what club will you be watching closely?
There's two teams I'll be watching closely. It's going to be interesting to see just how Ally McCoist does in his first season in charge at Ibrox. Between the expectations from the fans, having to live up to the legacy of Smith and the never-ending saga in the Boardroom he's got his work cut out for him. The other team worth keeping an eye out for were last year’s surprise package Kilmarnock. I had them down as relegation battlers (in which there were replaced by Aberdeen. Oh, the irony) but against all the odds Mixu and the boys fairly mixed it up last year to produce a fine campaign. Pity about that 5-1 pumping on the final day of the season, but let's not dwell eh?

3. Who do you think will be bottom of the league/destined for the drop?
I've said it two years in a row now, so here's to third time lucky: St Mirren. This has got to be your year. Danny Lennon has managed to bring in some new faces, but there's just something so grim about that team. Perhaps it's the black and white. Perhaps it's Paisley. Perhaps it's the dour football. I dunno. In any case, I'm tripling my stake at the bookies this year to make up for all the money lost so far. That's a full 3 quid on St Mirren to go down!

4. Where do you think your club will finish in the league?
There was little to take from the final few games of the season as the Brox revolution I often mentioned excitedly to non-believers in the canteen at work fizzled off into the ether. A new season and the dead wood is gone, and providing we can remain injury-free, perhaps we can push into the top half of the table. Much will depend on the summer signings, but for now a top half finish in the bottom half of the table would not surprise or disappoint me. It's improvement, but I think there's a lot of work that needs to be done at the club (both on and off the field) before we can start seriously competing again. Rome wasn't built in a day, so I'm prepared to wait - provided I see effort put into every game.

5. Who is the club's key player?
Well, it was Sone Aluko but now that he's decided he wants to swap the Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen for some club in Englandshire (he's "homesick" apparently) we're going to have to find someone else. Thankfully the offers for him are not storming in, a fringe benefit of playing for the mighty Aberdeen. So with Maguire already gone and assuming Aluko doesn't stay on (the fact we've signed or are about to sign a raft of midfielders would suggest he's not), then Scott Vernon will be key. A proper poacher, he'll get us the goals - as long as the recurring hernia injury that scuttled his season last year doesn't, like, recur.

6. Hopes for the coming season?
For Aberdeen: consistency - the ability to put together a string of results (preferably ones were we win). Last season's sad statistic saw Aberdeen rack up the longest losing run (seven games). That's got to change, otherwise we can look forward to another long, long season. We made 2 semi-finals last year losing to Celtic on both occasions (aye ok, shipping eight goals in the process) so while we're not going to win the league any time soon, a(nother) good Cup run should be achievable.

For Scottish football as a whole: excitement, good football, competition and the rise of a new force in the game. While good football is not always on show, there's plenty of excitement still to be found in the Scottish game. It's such a shame that so much of it takes place away the big green grassy bit with the lines on it. If it's not referees on strike it's parcel bombs, sectarian nonsense and financial woes, none of which exactly puts Scottish football in a good light.

7. Fears for the coming season?
For Aberdeen: I doubt very much that it's going to happen again, but no more heavy defeats please. I can't stand the embarrassment. For the game in general: well, football is not just a game of two halves, it's also a competition so here's hoping that the league won't be over by the time the winter weather stops the season in its tracks.

8. Whose player was the biggest waste of money from last season? And where is he now?
Oh, easiest question so far: Jerel Ifil. Technically not a new player to the side, the fact we continued to pay him qualifies him in my opinion. A deeply terrible player that started out badly and grew steadily worse as the season wore on. Last seen down Bristol Rovers's way, though I hear he's been released there also. Which says it all really.

9. Other fans think our club is....
An easy three points. Very far away. A shadow of its former self. Moving to a new stadium they'll never fill. I could go on ..

10. What opposition player would you want to play for your club?
This is hypothetical, so I'll let my imagination run free here: as a former keeper myself I'd have gone for Alan McGregor. With Langfield out for most of the season while he recovers from his seizure we could use a good solid keeper to shore up the defence and instil some confidence where it is much needed. New boy David Gonzalez (GK) comes with good recommendations but I don’t think he's played a competitive game since 2008. If his interviews are anything to go by he's a rather confident young man, who reckons his strengths are "everything". I hope so: we've no time to fanny about while he gets used to the SPL.

11. What opposition player would you love to see fail miserably?
Not so much player as players: the entire Heart of Midlothian squad can go take a running jump into the Firth of Forth as far as I am concerned. And while they're at it I hope they won’t forget to take their sour-pussed manager and their frankly stark-raving certifiably mad owner with them. Everybody wave. Byeeeee!

12. Your manager's popularity out of 10 with the fans?
Not sure. I think he started out alright, but the final few weeks of the season were tough going as the 'new manager' effect wore off. The injuries didn't help, but the fisty-cuffs with John Boyle was class (not that I condone violence of course) and showed he has plenty of fight in him - if appropriately stimulated. Perhaps a good 9-0 defeat on the opening day against St Johnstone will do the job and start us on the road to European football. The move to appoint Richard Foster has divided opinion as to the man's sanity, but personally I'd give him a six out of ten. "Wee Craig shows promise, but must do better". I reckon most Aberdeen fans will agree.

13. What team would you select for the opening season for your club?
No idea. Much depends on the summer signings. There's lots of trailists on display at the moment so who knows what the opening day will bring. Having the likes of Fyvie and Pawlett back is good news (providing the latter can stay injury free). Osbourne is a good addition, so in midfield I think we have options. Time will tell what our new goalkeeper will be like and ideally we need a full-back, two central defenders and a creative midfielder.