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Burnley Preview | Derek McInnes

01 August 2018
Author AFC Media Team

 

Derek McInnes spoke to the media this afternoon ahead of the Europa League Second Round Qualifier at Turf Moor. Keep an eye out for the full press conference on RedTV

Team News

“We’ve got a full squad to choose from other than Mark Reynolds, Frank Ross and Greg Tansey who were out last week. Andy Considine’s been added to the squad and has trained the last few days so everyone’s good to go. We had a straightforward session with a bit of running at Pittodrie and travelled down with no hiccups. The lads will familiarise themselves with the pitch and the surroundings and then it’s back to the hotel. I’m looking forward to the game.”

The Match

“I’ve always found in Europe against the better teams and Burnley are up there with anything we’ve played in Europe, you normally need two strong performances. One is normally not enough. I felt before the game that we had to score here to probably get through the tie and that’s where we are. Burnley were favourites prior to the game, which I totally understand and with their away goal last week it puts them in the box seat. The onus is on us to score and change that, but I’m confident that we can do that. We’ve had some good results on the road in Europe and domestically we’re always strong and we always believe we can score. There was enough evidence from the game last week although we didn’t capitalise on the moments we knew we were capable of scoring on more than one occasion. We recognise the strength of our opponent and we understand they’ll be favourites but for me it’s finely balanced and it’s half time in a cup tie.”

“Normally in their own league Burnley, as well as they’ve done, are probably underdogs the majority of the time and they would be happy with that tag. They’ve done fantastically the last couple of seasons and I think in this tie from the outset they are huge favourites. I don’t think they’ll be feeling that pressure. The expectation is Burnley will take care of business and we get that, but it’s up to us to try and change that perception and be as competitive as we normally are.”

“As soon as the ball rolls there’s a game to be won. I was asked last week the difference between the clubs and the huge financial gulf and the league Burnley operate in means the financial differences between them and us is huge. My players will be confident to set about that task and we’ll see where we go. We’re not coming down here thinking we’ll be gallant losers and good old Aberdeen putting up a fight. The aim is to get through the tie as it’s been since we were drawn together.”

Experience

“You take confidence from any positive experiences. Whether that’s winning in Europe previously or winning cups or winning at Ibrox and Celtic Park you just harness the experiences. It can not just lift the profile of the club, but lift the confidence of a player. We’ve got it, all to do and we’ve got a tie to try and win. Winning here against a Premier League team on their home patch is a difficult task, but it’s one we feel we can do.”

“We always find in the second leg is the dynamics can change really quickly. I remember a 0-0 at Pittodrie and going to Groningen and we scored early in the game and the pressure was on them. They had to change and it’s important we strike first tomorrow if we can do that and if Burnley score we still need to score and we’ll be as we were. It’s swings and roundabouts during the 90 minutes and you’ve got to be ready to cope with that if you need a goal as the game goes on. I don’t think we need to force the issue from the outset.”

“From experience playing in Europe that first competitive game is worth everything and Burnley will be feeling the same. Last week was a proper game full of effort and very competitive. They won’t be at their best at this stage of the season and neither are we, but we can certainly be competitive. The fact we’ve had that competitive game we’ll be better this time around. There’re times where I thought we used too much energy at times in the first half, but there’s no doubting the players put everything into the game and that played out. We were very good for long spells. Even when Burnley dominated the ball second half we still had plenty of good moments where we could have got another goal. It’s hoping we can be more clinical when those moments arise.”

“I probably learned more about my team rather than Burnley. We’ve watched them enough and recognise they are a good team with their organisation, size, ability to handle the ball as well as their togetherness and spirit. That’s why they are in Europe and finished 7th. For my own team I learned a lot about players who haven’t played in Europe before. I liked the confidence and attitude of my players, so we’ll be looking for the same again and a bit more. It will need to be that to get the result tomorrow.”

Supporters

“We’d have had a lot more supporters if we’d been given a bigger allocation, but they normally make themselves heard on the road. Even domestically and certainly in Europe we’ve had some of our best moments come in European campaigns and the supporters relish the trips. Europe is important to us and we don’t want this game to be the only one this season so it’s important we try all we can. The players fed off the crowd last week and the crowd were fantastic and hopefully we can have something here even though they’ll be in a minority they’ll make themselves heard.”

Scott McKenna

“Tomorrow’s a chance for Scott McKenna to showcase himself on the big stage. His international recognition has probably elevated him more than playing domestically for Aberdeen, but for me Scott will go straight to the Premier League in time. He’s too good not to be playing in the Premier League and he’ll bypass the Championship. He’s up against good strikers and they have had that reliance on their front two whatever front two it is. Whether it’s Vokes, Barnes or Wood whatever they go for they’re a handful for most defences, so Scott and others will need to be fully concentrated as they were last week.”

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