The Red Matchday Editor has been speaking to the players over the last couple of weeks ahead of Saturday’s Scottish Cup showdown at Hampden.

Ante Palaversa

For most of the Dons, including Ante Palaversa, this cup final will be the biggest game of their careers, as the Croatian midfielder explains.

“When I was playing back home in Croatia for Hajduk Split there were local derbies. They were huge games, but the Scottish Cup final, we are playing for a trophy, so this will be the biggest game of my career so far. I want to win that trophy. That is why you play football.

“The semi-final against Hearts was unbelievable. The atmosphere was amazing. Before the game, the boys we telling me what it would be like, guys who played in the Scottish and League Cup semi-final’s and final of the League Cup the previous season. They told me it would be really good. I was prepared, but on the other hand I was still impressed because it was so good.

“When we scored the winner, it was amazing. By that time, I was on the bench but I had a feeling that we were going to score, even although there were only a few minutes left. It does not matter that it was right at the end, we won the game! Fighting for a trophy for the first time in my career, I was so happy and relieved when Oday scored, and really proud of the team.

“The final, it is a game that we are going to give absolutely everything. Of course, you have to do that every time you play, but in the final, there are no second chances. All that matters is winning, nothing else.

“Many of my family and friends are coming over. Others will be watching the game at home in Croatia. It is a massive occasion.

“It is pressure. But it is good pressure. You need to have pressure to perform.

“It is a special end to a good first season here. I am enjoying my time in Aberdeen. I am enjoying being part of this squad. I have really enjoyed the whole season. I wanted to play a whole season without any injuries after what has happened to me in recent years, and I have done that.

“I feel very settled, and I am so, so happy to be here. I have never been so happy during my career. I have spoken about it before, but the last three years, were very tough. Aberdeen saved me. They gave me my life back as a footballer. They have helped get my career back on track.

“To win a trophy as well as getting European qualification would mean a lot to me. It is what the team want to achieve, and it is what I want to achieve. We will give it everything.”

Topi Keskinen

“I would say that it is the biggest game, the most important game I have played in so far. I have played in some big games before, but this will be the biggest. As well as winning the league, I have also won the League Cup in Finland, but it is more of a pre-season tournament.

“I enjoyed playing at Hampden, in the semi-final. There is a special feeling when you play there.

“It has been a long season for me. I knew when I did not leave in the January transfer window from HJK Helsinki that I would leave in the summer, and I knew that it would mean that I have a long season, running for a year and a half. I have done better than I thought I would do. Mentally and physically it is quite tough, it is probably the mental side that is hardest. It is just part of being a professional footballer.

“The one good thing about having so many games, you don’t have time to think about it! And I now I have a cup final to look forward to.

“The numbers of fans, it is massive. That is why we need to give them a good performance and show some real spirit. I would be disappointed if I was travelling every single week and the team was not playing well. Of course the fans are disappointed, but trust me the players are disappointed if we don’t do well.

“It is the same when I played for HJK in Europe when we came up against good teams, if you don’t score, they will. So if we get opportunities, we have to take them. That has been the case when you analysis a number of the games against Celtic this season. We have not taken our chances and they have.”

Jeppe Okkels

Playing under Jimmy Thelin for such a long spell gives Jeppe a particular insight into the Dons boss, and especially into the way he has evolved as a manager.

“Like any player, you develop over time and I think that is the same for a manager. If you go back five or six years, when I first worked with him, and compare him to now, I think he is a better manager because he has more experience. Also he is now at Aberdeen who are a bigger club, where there is more pressure. But the ideas are still the same, the calmness is the same. He does not lose his head or go crazy like you see other gaffers doing. He is always calm, so he can watch the game objectively and assess what he can do to change things. So that is the same, but he has also developed as well.

“Let me also assure you he is very passionate. Just because he is not standing shouting and waving his arms on the touchline, it does not mean he is not passionate. I would say that he focusses on the right things, the things that he can control.

“In football, it is important to control your emotions, and not get too high or low. I think it is something that comes with experience, as a manager and as a player. If you were to ask a 17-year-old Jeppe Okkels who had just made his professional debut, you would have got a very different answer. At that age, when you had played a good game, you were thinking you would be playing for Barcelona soon and then you have a bad game and think you are the worst player on the planet! Your emotions are very up and down. The sooner you realise it is part of football and learn to deal with it, the better player you can be.”
Clearly Jimmy Thelin has had an impact on Jeppe, because they share some obvious traits in the way they look at the game.

“I don’t like the word confidence, and I am sure the manager would say the same. He wants us to go out and put in the same performance every week, regardless of how you are feeling. But I was lacking game time before I came here and if I can be honest, it took me longer to get back to the real me and to play the way I know I can if am feeling good and my match fitness is right. It took me longer than expected to get there but I feel better now. I feel that I can make a difference to the team. Hopefully I can continue that.

“There is a difference between fitness and match sharpness. Also, instinct. When I first came here, I would be over thinking scenarios instead of forgetting about everything and just playing football, like you did when you were playing at school! Playing on instinct and enjoying the game. That is something, I would not say that I am trying to get back to, because I have always enjoyed football, but over the last few years, I have been at a lot of clubs. I have been in Sweden, then in the Netherlands with Utrecht, then in England with Preston and now here. So many things have happened so it’s just about taking it day by day and getting the best out of that instead of worrying about what might happen in the future. In all this rush, you kind of forget the simple game that it is. For example, when you see Shayden taking on players down the line, that just comes naturally to him. He is playing on instinct and not overthinking it.

“So much in football is very close, small things can make the difference. You have seen it at Aberdeen this season, when we started so well. Then there was a bad run. In some of the games, you put in the same performance, sometimes you win 1-0 or 2-0, and then sometimes you lose by the same score. It can come down to such small margins such as a referee’s decision, a mistake or a piece of real quality like Kevin’s goal against Hibs. A lot of times, the games are so close that one small moment decides it.”
The Scottish Cup semi-final was the kind of game that Jeppe joined the Dons to figure in, and his first taste of Hampden Park did not disappoint.

“I have played in some semi-finals before at different clubs, but the game against Hearts would certainly be one of the biggest games of my career so far. It was amazing with the crowd and the whole experience of going to Hampden Park for the first time. Even during the warm up, it felt different to a normal game. Then when you are on the bench you have to try and stay calm, which is difficult! It is actually easier to stay calm when you are on the pitch, because you are just focussed on playing.

“On the bench, you have to follow the game closely because you know there is a big chance you will have to come on and make an impact. I think if you ask players at all the top clubs around Europe, they would say the same. You start with 11 players but you finish with another five players so it is 16 players who win you the game. You look at the stats, there are more goals scored in the second half than the first half, especially in the last 15 minutes.

“When you are coming on as a sub, you have to be up to speed straight away. I think you can do this through the warm up. If you really try to push yourself then you get tired before you come in. That maybe sounds wrong but it is actually a good thing because you are already in the game in terms of the load. You can then cope with it when you get into the game. You don’t get a big shock.

“At Hampden, it was not easy to concentrate the same way on the bench, because it was such a big game. I was starting to think the game was going to penalties. I was prepared for where I was going to shoot. I was planning that on the bench.”

A penalty shootout is not alien territory for Jeppe this season, given that he scored twice in Preston’s 16-15 win over Fulham in the League Cup.

“I think it was some kind of record because everyone kept scoring! Eventually someone missed, but then the other team missed as well, so we kept going! I had to take two penalties which is never easy. I actually changed sides for my second penalty. It is just mind games when you go that far in a shootout. I don’t want to say it is luck, but if the keeper goes the right way, it is what it is.

“Fortunately we did not need penalties and we are in the final. It is great at the end of the season to have these massive games. It is just a case of trying to enjoy them and again, the point I made earlier, don’t overthink them. Of course they are important, but you need to stay calm and do your job.

Kevin Nisbet 

The Dons striker spoke to RedTV this week.

“I’m excited, I am really excited. It’s going to be a massive day. A massive day, for the players, a massive day for the club and a massive day for the fans. It’s up to us to go and put on a good show and make them all enjoy their day.

“We try to keep stuff as normal as possible in the build-up but there is a lot more media, a lot more interviews, and a lot more cameras and stuff like that. For us it’s just a normal week. It’s about getting a game plan and trying to go and get the win on Saturday.

“I am aware of Aberdeen’s history in the Scottish Cup, I think it’s thirty-five years since the last time we won it. It’s a big deal and it’s up to us as players to go and stand up to that challenge on Saturday and try and bring the Scottish Cup back to Aberdeen.

“We know Celtic are a top team, they play the same way, they do the same stuff consistently and that is why they are champions. For us we’ve got a game plan. Obviously, I can’t say too much on it but it’s just up to us to execute that game plan on Saturday. We will do a lot in the training week, leading up to it, and it’s just about us as players to go out and execute it.

“You’ve got boys like myself, Shinnie and Nicky who have been in Finals before and have experience of it. We’ve got a lot of boys coming over to Scotland for the first time, so they’ve not really experienced that. It’s up to us as senior player to keep calm in the dressing room and look forward to Saturday.

“I think everyone wants to score the winner, but I would take a deflection in the last minute to win one nil or anyone in the team to score just to win the Scottish Cup. It would be massive for the club, massive for the fans and massive for the players as well.

“It’s definitely up there as one of the biggest games I’ve played in. It’s going to be a great day. Us players are really looking forward to it, and it’s just about us now trying to go and get the win.

“We are just purely concentrated on Saturday for the game plan. Everything from now until Saturday is just purely on the game plan, thinking twenty-four seven, what to do, what to do. Hopefully, come the final whistle, we’ll be up there lifting the Scottish Cup, which would be great.”

Mats Knoester

Dutch defender Mats Knoester was one of the players who spoke to the press during the cup final media day on Wednesday at Pittodrie.

“I’m looking forward to it very much. It is the biggest game of the season, and also the nicest, because there is a prize at stake.

“Saturday is right up there (as one of the biggest games of my career). It is one of the biggest games for me. I had a Cup Final last season, and I had one with Feyenoord, but I wasn’t involved, and some Europa League games, but I’m sure this is one of the biggest.

“Almost all my family will be coming, except my sister, who will be in Australia, so she has a good excuse!

“It is a different game than normal, because you can win the cup which is massive, but on the other hand it is still a game like we play every other week. We need to focus on doing our jobs and doing the things that we need to do well, so we can’t think ‘final final final’ and forget what we need to do. I think it’s about finding that balance and then going out there and performing.

“My Cup Final last year we were doing alright, and then a minor error cost us a 1-0 defeat. The lesson is don’t be too busy trying to win a Cup Final, instead of focusing on your tasks as a player and as a team, so that is what I take from that experience into the game on Saturday.

“We aren’t nervous or scared by the last game against Celtic, but of course we realise we have to do better, and you can’t give Celtic much because they will take their opportunities, we need to try see it as a wakeup call about the things we need to do better and different.

“Of course they are the favourite but that doesn’t mean they are going to win. You see it a lot this season, there have been many teams who have won cups that most people thought weren’t going to win it. We have done good things this season, we have come far, and that’s because we are a good team as well.

“I don’t prepare any differently for a big game. I don’t have many superstitions. For every game I think ‘what do I feel like’ and then I do what feels best, apart from the usual routine. Nothing special. It is also about sticking to what we have been doing in the past, and what got us here.

“You can’t control what people think, they can think whatever they want, it is more important what we think, and then we can show them they are not right. I wouldn’t be sitting here if I didn’t believe we could win it, so of course you believe.

“I have only been here a short time but long enough to understand the importance of this competition and what it would mean to the fans. Also, your name will be remembered forever, and that’s one of the biggest things a player can achieve at any football club.

Dimitar Mitov

“There’s no secret about it.

“Not just for me, but for all the players, staff and fans, everyone wants to win the cup. There is pressure playing for Aberdeen, but that’s why I came here. I want to compete for trophies and try for Europe every season, that’s the challenge here.

“I’m a player who wants to win. I have the mentality you have to win at all costs.

“We know how tough it will be. Celtic have a specific way of playing with runners in behind and good individuals. They can blow teams away very quickly, and can do that to anyone in the league. So it’s important to stick to the things we are good at. It’s all about being compact and trying to stop the spaces. If we can do that, it neutralises their strengths and then we can show how good we are.

“We can hurt Celtic, for sure, but we have to actually go and do it. We have to show that.

“In the League Cup semi-final, you witnessed the impact in football of not being in the right positions. Celtic saw that and exploited it straight away. They are good at it and that’s why they are the champions.

“Celtic are the best team in the league – they show it week in and week out. So you need to be near-perfect against them. Nobody in football is perfect, of course, and mistakes happen, but it’s how you react to it and regroup straight after it.

“How does your team-mate help you? How do you help the person who made the mistake? If you see your mate make a mistake, you have to run for him, you have to help him solve it. When you do that, it brings the crowd up, they get involved and everyone gets that extra boost and belief.

“When that happens it is so powerful.

“You always have to stick to the plan – even if you go a goal down, stick to what you are doing. For us, it has to be about the team rather than individuals.

“We must have a team performance.”

Graeme Shinnie

Final word goes to the skipper, Graeme Shinnie, who will lead the team out at Hampden on Saturday in what will be his 300th appearance for Aberdeen.

“I’ve never shied away from saying that it would mean everything. It would be massive for me. I’ve done it before, which is probably one of the highlights of my career. It is the best feeling ever.

“It’s something that I’ve wanted for so long at this club, and it’s hard to do, of course, especially when you come up against teams like Celtic.

“It is going to be tough. You have to relish it though, you have got to work hard, you have got to want to do the dirty work. You have to relish these challenges.

“We are looking forward to the game. It is a big occasion. A great game and it is what you are in football for, days like this.

“We are well aware of what could be. But fully focussed on trying to achieve it.

“The last time I won it, we managed to beat Celtic in the semi-final. I am not sure many of my team mates will know about that game! I might need to tell them about it.

“Cup games can always be strange. I have been involved in so many mad cup games over the years.

“It is a game where two teams will prepare and try and implement their game plans as best they can. Whoever plays better will win. Going into the game, whoever is the favourite and who is the underdog, all that talk, does not really matter. For us, it is about getting on with our work and focus as much as we can on training this and focus on how we want to play and how we are going to execute it. That is the most important thing.

“To win, we have to be at the top of our game. We have to try and knock them off their rhythm and fluidity. They are very good, and if you allow them to be very good, them they will. So we have to try and disrupt them. It is also important that we are ruthless at both ends of the pitch. And character will be important on the day.

“We will have a game plan, we need to work really hard and then see what happens on the day.

“It’s important again to have that backing. Even in the semi-final, they were maybe outnumbered, but they definitely weren’t out-sung. We could hear them throughout the game, which was important for us in that semi-final.

“To have 20,000 there backing us will be huge and we want to try and reward them.

“Winning trophies for a club is massive. It would be massive for the city. For the players and the staff, it’s one of the best days but for the fans especially. Players come and go, managers come and go but the fans are the constant that are there all the time.

“To give our fans a Scottish Cup would mean everything to them, it would be special. So we’re determined to try and give them that.”