Inverness swept away.

Aberdeen produced a Christmas cracker this afternoon as they swept Inverness aside and closed the gap on the teams above them in the SPL. Mulgrew scored the only goal of the first half after only six minutes when he hit a sweet left foot shot in to the top left hand corner of the goal giving former Don Ryan Esson no chance to save. Aberdeen then took control after the break with two goals in five minutes at the start of the second half. The first came from McDonald and then Mackie added a sublime third with a great finish. The Dons have now set up a mouth watering prospect as Hearts visit Pittodrie next Saturday.

Aberdeen kicked off and were presented with a clear cut chance in the opening minute when Mackie pounced on a mistake from Proctor. Darren cut the ball back to his fellow striker Lee Miller who hit the ball sweetly, but fired inches wide. A minute later the home side almost scored when Tokley worked his way to the bye line and Severin was forced to block an effort from Cowie. Mackie then won a free kick 30 yards out in the sixth minute and it produced the opener. Mulgrew once again showed his prowess from the dead ball as he beat Esson with a well struck shot in to the top left of the goal.

Aluko supplied a great cross in the 10th minute after good work from Mackie, but Miller was flagged offside in what looked a tight decision. Proctor was struggling to cope with Miller and he conceded his umpteenth free kick to the striker in the 15th minute. This time Tokely was on hand to clear his lines as the Dons looked to double their advantage. Aluko then showed great skill a minute later as he spun to shake off Tokely, but McDonald was flagged offside as he tried to get on the end of the cross. At the other end Imrie headed wide as the game raged from end to end.

Aluko was again tormenting the home defence in the 18th minute but was let down by his final ball. Mackie had a sniff of goal three minutes later as Mair released the striker, but he was unable to take advantage. Esson was then called into action in the 25th minute when he made a comfortable save from de Visscher. The keeper made a mess of a clearance two minutes later allowing the Dons to win the first corner of the match, but nothing came from the set play. Inverness then won their first corner on the half hour mark, but the end result was the same.

Langfield was tested in the 37th minute as Black fired in a dipping shot and three minutes later Imrie fired wide as the home team looked to get back in the match. Inverness were finishing the half on a high as they forced their way forward in the closing five minutes, but the Dons defence held firm despite Cowie heading inches over in the final minute of the half.

Foster replaced de Visscher at half time as Jimmy decided to make a tactical switch and after three minutes Imrie collected the first caution of the match. A minute later Mulgrew whipped a free kick into the box and it was eventually scrambled for a corner. From the set play Esson made an instinctive save from Miller as he tipped the ball over the bar. Then with 51 minutes on the clock Aberdeen doubled their lead when McDonald took advantage of a poor clearance by Black to crash the ball past Esson with his left foot. A minute later a Foster blunder gifted the home side a corner, but fortunately Inverness failed to capitalise.

Mackie looked to be felled as he chased a through ball from Aluko, but the referee waved play on before the striker wrapped up the points in the 56th minute following a sublime bit of play that produced an excellent finish. A minute later Kerr collected a yellow card as the red army started the festive celebrations early inside the Caledonian Stadium. Aberdeen had a chance to make it four in the 63rd minute when fine play from Mackie created the chance as he cut the ball back to Aluko. Unfortunately the Englishman fired wide as he went for the finish with his left foot.

A speculative low shot from Foster was easily gathered by Esson in the 69th minute and a minute later Cowie failed to test Langfield with a wild shot. Aberdeen then had a lucky escape in the 71st minute as combination of Langfield and the woodwork denied the home side a goal. Aberdeen appeared to have taken the foot off the pedal and the home side won a series of corners. A ball blasted at Kerr in the 75th minute brought appeals for a spot kick, but it was never a penalty and Hastings earned a yellow card for his protests.

Tokely collected a deserved yellow card in the 79th minute as he cynically scythed down Sone Aluko. A minute later Maguire replaced Aluko who would no doubt be rested for next week’s battle with Hearts. Youngster Michael Paton was handed his debut when he replaced Lee Miller in the 86th minute. The youngster won a corner in the final minute, but there was to be no further scoring as Esson eventually gathered.