Sky Sport News. Aberdeen skipper Graeme Shinnie shows his true colours with searingly honest verdict about Celtic.

The Dons had gone 16 games undefeated under Thelin before being sent back to earth.

 

Graeme Shinnie assures Jimmy Thelin that Aberdeen’s six-goal defeat at Hampden Park will not be a setback.

The Dons enjoyed a 16-game undefeated streak under their Swedish boss until being knocked out by Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final. Shinnie and his crew are determined to overcome a temporary setback and resume their season on track, as Thelin described it as a bump in the road.

He stated, “It was a huge bump on the road, but we’ll regroup and try again next week. We’ve had a wonderful start to the season, but this one will send us back down to Earth. This is why we say we need to take things one game at a time. It’s critical that we reflect on it, put a line under it, and move on to next Saturday.

Shinnie understands that the agony from Saturday’s thrashing will last for some time, but he encouraged Dons to utilise it to their advantage. He continued, “This will hurt for a few days, but once you get over it, it’s about moving on, and we’re in a good position in the league.” We need to focus on it right now and learn from it. We are dissatisfied with how we played, but it is over and we must go on. We need to be more resilient, roll up our sleeves, and fight harder. Everyone has a learning curve. We played at Celtic Park and drew, but each game is different. If you let Celtic be who they are, Saturday will happen. We need to react to it.”

Shinnie admitted that Aberdeen struggled to reach their current levels and suffered from poor goal-scoring. He stated, “We just did not show up at all. It wasn’t good enough; Celtic were excellent on the day, whilst we weren’t. If you offer them that, they will punish you. I thought we didn’t get close to them, we lacked resilience, and our aims were quite weak. We let them control the game and do anything they wanted at times.

“If you allow them to do that, they will punish you, and they did. They did an excellent job of moving the ball and rotating it like they always do. They played really well, and when they do, and we do not perform to our best potential, that is what happens.”

Celtic are nearly unbeatable when led by Brendan Rodgers, but Shinnie believes his squad did not give themselves a chance. The Dons rallied back to tie in the league with Celtic a week ago, but the champions had obviously learnt their lesson ahead of Saturday. Shinnie continued: “What can you do? You may roll up your sleeves and become more robust.

“The style of the goals at important periods in the game, particularly surrendering from a set piece, was disheartening. If they cut you open and score with a touch of wizardry, fair enough. But from a set piece? We need to do better. Celtic will always be up for it, so it is up to us to match them.

“It’s a semi-final at Hampden, so it’s a massive game whatsoever; both of us want to make it to the final. I simply felt like after the set piece, they gained a lot of confidence, and we went the other way. They walked it after that. That’s disheartening since we hoped to be more resilient. We did not make the desired impact on the game. I wouldn’t use exhaustion as an excuse; we just weren’t good enough that day.

It was a crushing setback to the 13,000-strong Red Army that had made the arduous journey down to Hampden. However, they supported their side throughout and even waited after the final whistle to praise their players.

Shinnie remarked, “We are incredibly grateful to the fans for their reaction; it is huge for us. As a team and a squad, we are appreciative, and it is now up to us to turn things around. We need to go back on the winning track.”

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