Derek McInnes | Reaction from Latvia

After watching his side win 1-0 in Ventspils Derek McInnes spoke to RedTV.

“We were very professional, organised, and at times it was a very good performance. We knew it had to be a professional performance. We made the point to the players it was only half time in the tie.

“As I said before, if the game was coming back to Pittodrie 3-0, I would still think the tie is alive. I am sure Ventspils felt the same. It was important they saw an Aberdeen team ready to fight for everything and for the majority of the game we did exactly that.

“We had to make sure we got through the game without any drama and incident and apart from a few bits of loose possession I thought we did that. I felt the drama came from the officials. I thought it was never a penalty kick but thankfully Joe has tidied that mess up with a brilliant save.

“I thought second half we were the better side and took our chance when it came along. Rooney is so reliable in those situations. We actually had the better chances in the game.

“I thought we deserved to win the game tonight. Both teams were closer tonight in terms of level of performance compared with at Pittodrie but at 3-0 up there was no need for us to go chasing the game. To win the tie 4-0 and to get two clean sheets was very pleasing.

“Joe Lewis did very well for us. He made some terrific saves.Similar to Danny coming in last year, we have taken the decision to throw Joe straight in. Even from the early days of pre-season training I felt we had two very strong keepers here. I am delighted with that. It gives everyone so much reassurance.

“Joe’s all round game is very tidy. He has good size, good agility, kicks well, talks well, he is nice and calm and hopefully he has landed at the right club to get his own game going again.

“There were some really strong performances from us. Ryan Jack, Kenny McLean and Graeme Shinnie in the middle of the park were outstanding. The back four got better together in that second half. All in all it was a good nights work and it had to be that. We can now look forward to seeing who we get next.

“Getting through to the third round for the third straight season, it does not get any easier. Ventspils are a decent team and we have had to come up with a couple of decent performances at this stage of the season to get through. The level of competition will improve each round so we have to make sure we improve as well and make sure we are ready for it. We have to make sure we are ready to give a strong performance next Thursday. The tournament starts to heat up at this stage and hopefully we get a really good crowd at Pittodrie next week.

“I can’t wait. I know the players are the same. It will be a proper European night.”