Aberdeen boss Stephen Robinson was pleased with the workout that FC Twente game his side as we head towards the start of the season proper in the Premier Sports Cup in ten days.
“Today was a real test against a top level side, that's what we wanted. We wanted to be tested, you want to find out what you need to fix and you want to see the fitness levels of the boys. We don’t want easy games at this point that you win 3-0, 4-0. We want to push people, we want to see how far we can push them in terms of the press, so lots of good stuff came out of today.
“It was a good performance, really solid, really organised, we pressed well at times and we should have scored two or three goals, possibly a penalty as well. We've found solutions to things that we didn't like in
“I thought the whole back four in the first half particularly was very good. Some of the pressing, some of the out of possession stuff was really good. That was something that we struggled with in Wednesday's game, but the boys put in a real shift today.
“What we have to learn is when you defend that much against a team of their level, you have to keep the ball better. Tiredness creeps in, especially with the weather, and you can be punished.
“Overall, it's been a good week, a fantastic facility that we've been in. I see the team bonding together now, the new boys have been welcomed in. I still think there's maybe two or three positions that we need to strengthen to really finish off the squad, but everyone's aware of that and we'll continue to look to improve.”
Some of the squad remained back at Cormack Park as they return from injury and the manager provided an update on their progress.
“We're hopeful of maybe getting one or two of the injured lads who stayed back home ready for the start of the season. Mats Knoester will be the closest, he should be on the grass next week with the early stages of recovery, so he’s probably looking at three weeks. Gyamfi and Tobers will be a little bit longer, so they probably won't be back in time for the start of the season.
“We have to build on what we've done here and then hopefully those boys can come back and add to the squad.
“With Ayoub, his season's only finished three weeks ago, so he'll still have relatively good fitness levels. He's a goalscorer, he's what we need. The system that we're playing can change it to various systems, 4-2-3-1, 4-3-3 with two wingers, or 4-4-2 with two strikers, and he gives us the option to do that, along with Kevin and Toyosi.
“It's going to take him a little bit of time. Scottish football is frantic, it is different than any league in the world, some of it good, some of it bad, but it is unique and it will take a little bit of adjustment. But in terms of fitness levels, he should be ready to hit the ground running next week.”
More than a hundred Dons fans watched the game in the Netherlands, much to Robinson’s delight.
“The travelling fans were fantastic here, at the end they were screaming for a penalty, they were a lot closer than me, so I believe the referee might have favoured the home team a little bit with that one! The support was brilliant, as always, home and away.”
