All things must pass, so they say, and that was sadly confirmed with the news earlier this month that Tomáš Černy had left the Dons and hung up the goalkeeping gloves for the final time. It brings to an end a playing career that has taken him across Europe and, as we shall discover, find a new home for himself and his family. But like so many before him, the heavy demands placed on the body across years of professional football have taken their toll and, at the age of 35, Černy has finally had to give up the fight and will be moving on to the next phase of his life.

“Over the last three or four months, I’ve worked really hard to get back to full fitness after knee surgery, but unfortunately, I still have issues with the knee and that doesn’t allow me to train fully or take part in games. I don’t know when I will be able to do that and obviously, Aberdeen need a goalkeeper available here and now!

“My original plan was to retire at the end of my contract at the end of the season, but given the injury and the circumstances, it felt the right thing to do to bring that forward a few months. I’ve given it some thought, spoken with my family about it, and it feels right. It took a few days for me to adjust to the idea but the more I thought about it, the more I could see the big picture and the positives around it.

“What really helps in getting used to it is that I have something to focus on next, I am very focused on what are the next steps for me to take. It’s something I’ve had in mind all through my career because I started my first degree when I was 17. I continued with my education throughout my career, and in the last few years, the idea of becoming a teacher is something that has crystallised. Everything is in place for that, I start my postgraduate teaching training in August, so all that has happened really is my career has been cut short by four and a half months.

“But there are many things that I will miss. I’ve been doing this job professionally for 20 years now, you get used to the routine and I will miss that, I will miss coming in and seeing the boys, working with them. That feeling of making a good save, I will miss that! Hopefully when I’m properly fit again and I can start working in coaching, that’ll be a feeling I can have again a few times!”

Tomáš’ career started back home in the Czech Republic but his has been a footballing odyssey that also took in spells in Bulgaria, Greece and, of course, Scotland. He’s come a long way, literally and metaphorically.

“I can look back and feel proud of what I have achieved in the game. I grew up in a very small town in a mountainous area, we had a very small football club, nobody had ever gone from there and played any kind of sport professionally really. When I was 14 or 15, I was a good ice hockey player too, so there was a possibility I could go and do that instead, but I was always a bit better at football – and the season was longer, nine months instead of three!

“Growing up, if anyone had told me I would have a 20 year career in football and play over 400 games, I would have thought they were joking. I played in four different countries, I have so many good memories, I met people from all over the world, learnt different languages as part of the process, so looking back, I have to be satisfied with my career.

“My favourite game came very early because I would have to choose the European U19 Championship in 2003 when I was playing for the Czech Republic and we played England. It was the last game of the group, we had drawn against France and lost to Austria, so we had to win by three goals to give us a chance of getting to the semi-finals. And we won 3-0! My clean sheet was the difference between us qualifying. England had the likes of Liam Ridgewell, Wayne Routledge and Stewart Downing in their side. That was special, the first really big game in my career.

“We lost narrowly 1-0 to Italy in the semis so we got a bronze medal. Giampaolo Pazzini scored the only goal of the game. He went to make 25 appearances for the Italian national side. They went on and beat Portugal in the final.

“After that, the biggest break for me was when I was given a big chance to play by Hamilton when I was only 22. Coming to Scotland, learning the language, it opened up a new world for me. When you go away from home, and especially to a different country, you learn so much about yourself. I was on my own when I came, so there was a lot of time to think, to analyse your life and to work out what it is that I wanted to do.

“I felt very free coming to Scotland, nobody knew me, there were no expectations, and being given an opportunity to play at a young age was very different to the situation back home, so it was exciting. I had freedom to play, not to worry about making mistakes and that helped me get started. That really set me up for the rest of my career, playing so much football so early.

“I went back to play in Europe for a time and then came back to Scotland and ended up at Partick Thistle where I played some of my best football. I was a different goalkeeper by then, much more experienced, but physically I was still young, just turned 30, and I think I played very well for them. Relegation with Partick in 2018 still hurts because we had a very good first couple of seasons when I was there. Everyone was excited and thinking that we would be progressing forward, but then in 2017/18, for whatever reason, it just didn’t work out at all.

“When I look back, I think I made my favourite save there. I didn’t have too many good results against Rangers and Celtic over the years but I saved a penalty from Scott Sinclair for Partick against Celtic on the Wednesday which gave us a 1-1 draw at Celtic Park – we were losing 1-0 at the time. They had just won the league, the place was bouncing, but we needed to get something from the game. Then we played Motherwell at home on the Saturday. At 1-0 there was a shot which was behind me but I managed to keep it out. It was one of my best saves but also a very important one for the club, and that helped us get in the top six.”

Partick’s relegation did finally pave the way for Tomáš to come to Pittodrie, something that might have happened a few years earlier.

“I nearly joined Aberdeen before I moved to Sofia in 2012, there was contact made but it was signing as the number two and at that point in my career, I wanted to go to a club where I had the best chance to play every week. But I eventually made it here six years later!

“I was very grateful that the move here came about, it was perfect timing. It was the first time when I was happy to sign as an experienced number two goalkeeper, but to keep the pressure on the first choice and try to get some games myself. I’d have liked to play a few more games for Aberdeen, but it is credit to Joe, he has been terrific, very consistent and producing great performances week in week out. You cannot argue with that!

“But I think I have played my part in helping him and the team by working hard in training, keeping good standards so Joe knows I was there and ready to play! We have had a very good relationship, right from the start, and I have really enjoyed coming in and training with him every day. We have good banter between us, which is important. He is a strong leader and has been a good captain for the club too and I hope he will be for many years to come. In my opinion, he has been the best goalkeeper in Scotland over the past couple of years and he has a lot of football left in him.

“I’m very happy that I was here in a very good period for the club, I have had many good experiences, being involved in a cup final, in European competitions, having high finishes in the league. As well as that, my relationship with the people at the football club has been really good, there are so many good people here. I have to mention Gordon Marshall especially because he is such a great person, a very good coach, easy to work with.

“He has so much experience at different levels with different clubs and so he is very good at judging what each individual goalkeeper needs to be at their best. He can have a different approach with me and Joe, a different way of working with the younger goalkeepers, he is very adaptable and that is a great quality in a coach. I hope to stay in touch with him and talk goalkeeping in the future!”

Because of Joe Lewis’ incredible consistency – and fitness record – Tomáš has been limited to just a couple of appearances for the Dons, but he does have a 100% record.

“It’s nice that I played two and won two here! I loved playing in those games, it meant a lot to me. That helped my decision to retire – the last game I played, we won at Easter Road, so why not just leave it at that?! Actually, in more recent years, even at Partick, part of my preparation for the games was thinking that this could be my last game. As you get older, you never know, you might get injured, you might not get a new contract, and that really helped me to focus on every game and to enjoy them.

“I remember the game at Hibs, the last game of the season, it was a big game because we were trying to finish third and get the European spot and I remember writing it down, “This could be your last game”. I ended up playing well, we won, so it’s a good way to end as it turned out.”

Across his time at Pittodrie, Tomáš has impressed everyone by his commitment to the club and by being a real team man, as Derek McInnes points out. “Not all the signings need to be brilliant on the pitch and Tomáš hasn’t had that chance because of Joe’s consistency. But he has been a huge supporter of  the team, a huge supporter of Joe’s and his enthusiasm for the team to win all the time has been clear. In the dugout, he celebrates a goal more than anybody else and he has been a fantastic team-mate.”

“Whether I played or whether I was on the bench, this is a team game and if we win, I was as happy as anyone about it,” agrees Tomáš. “You probably realise that more and more over the years and you understand it more. But if I’m not happy that the team won the game, I shouldn’t be here. My role here is to do my best to help the team have success and if I’m not playing, then I have to support the boys that are.

“I’ve had so many nice moments here, especially going down to Glasgow and beating Rangers and some last minute winners in big games at Pittodrie, I enjoyed those immensely. I banged my head a few times jumping up in the dugout when we score! It’s always great to see the boys put good performances in (put in good performances ? ) and win games. And it is nice to make the fans happy too. I would like to thank them all because given the small number of games I’ve played here, the way they’ve taken to me has been amazing. The song they sang at Easter Road, I was taken aback and it made me very happy.”

It’s probably true that no position on the field has changed as much as goalkeeping has over the last 20 years and Tomáš admits that those changes have offered a real challenge to him during his career.

“To be perfectly honest, there are elements that I’ve found difficult to adjust to. The use of the ball as a goalkeeper has completely changed from when I was younger. Even when I first signed at Hamilton, the expectation was you just kicked it long, there was very little in terms of build up play or being the 11^th player where you are taking part in the possession play, always being there to play short passes. That has been the biggest change.

“You watch the biggest teams like Liverpool, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, the way the goalkeepers play there, it’s a different role. The goalkeeper has to be as comfortable with the ball at his feet as any other player – but the goalkeeper knows he cannot afford to make a loose pass or a mistake because there’s nobody behind to help you out! It’s a big responsibility and there are very high demands on goalkeepers now. People are much more focused on how important a top class goalkeeper is to a team.”

Tomáš is looking at a future in teaching and coaching, but before that starts, what advice does he have to pass on to youngsters like Tom Ritchie?

“To young goalkeepers, my first piece of advice is always to enjoy it. If you do that, then you will do your job really well, with a higher commitment and you will naturally get better at it. I also think goalkeepers should take time to just sit and think about what they are doing, how they are playing, where they need to improve and what steps they need to take next to get to the level they want to be at.

“Never be afraid to ask questions and to get advice because as a young goalkeeper, it is a very small window of opportunity that you have to make it in the professional game. So for young Tom, I think he is in the crucial years of his career, the next two or three years are massive for him. He has been given a massive opportunity to train with the first team at his age and I can see he has made a lot of progress in the last seven or eight months. It’s all there for him, but it needs a lot of hard work. He has to stay focused, not get side-tracked by anything, and he also has to be resilient. As a young goalkeeper, there are moments when it looks like it might not happen for you, but you have to keep believing and keep working hard.”

Tomáš won’t be a stranger at the club because he will turn his hands to working within the Aberdeen academy, giving them the benefit of his experience.

“It’s very exciting that I’m going to be coaching the young kids coming through. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, to work at youth level, because that’s where I see my strengths, teaching and helping them develop as players and as people. I think I have a lot to offer with my years of experience in the game, my background in education, but also, I am still young and I hope to bring fresh ideas in and try to anticipate what’s coming next, to help prepare the young boys and girls.”

The role within the academy fits in perfectly for Tomáš because he and his family are very definitely adopted Aberdonians.

“We decided to stay in Aberdeen for years to come, and as things have turned out, it is another thing I’m grateful to the club for – bringing me here to a place that we have come to love. Over the years, we were looking at different places we might settle after my football career, but this became the place. My son has started school here, so we’re not going anywhere!”