Aberdeen

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Image source, SNS

Aberdeen head coach Stephen Robinson says his side will need to be at the top of their game to beat Rangers at Pittodrie on Sunday, despite the visitors' difficult start to the season.

Derek McInnes and his team are already under pressure amid a poor run of performances that continued in the Czech Republic on Thursday night, when they were knocked out of the Conference League by Jablonec.

"We have to focus on ourselves first and foremost and what we bring to the game," Robinson said

"We have to bring the best version of ourselves. Every time you play Rangers, it is a difficult game.

"It doesn't matter what stage of the season it is and where they are in terms of results, you play Rangers, you have to be on top of your game to win the game."

Aberdeen have enjoyed a solid start to the season, losing just one of their seven games, and should be pretty fresh after last weekend's encounter with Motherwell was postponed because of the Steelmen's European commitments.

"I am not sure it is an advantage," Robinson insisted. "Players want to keep playing football and momentum all the time.

"We had a game last week, a practice game as well, so we have tried to keep the momentum going.

"We come into it positive after a really good week's training and I don't think it is a disadvantage to Rangers playing, no."

• Rangers manager Derek McInnes has lost five of his past six away league games against former side Aberdeen, including the latest three in a row since a 1-0 win with Kilmarnock in December 2023.

• Rangers could fail to win their opening three games of a league season for the second successive campaign (drawing three in 2025-26). Before this, they had not failed to win any of their opening three matches in 35 seasons from 1990-91 to 2024-25.

• Aberdeen have won four of their past five home league games (losing the other), including their first this season, 2-1 over Hearts. It is as many wins as their previous 16 at Pittodrie in the Scottish Premiership (W4 D5 L7).

• Rangers have won the past four league games against Aberdeen, but have not won five in a row over the Dons since October 2011 (when they won six).

• Aberdeen have only lost one of their past five home league games against Rangers (winning two of them), although that was their most recent, a 2-0 defeat in January last season.

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Image source, SNS

Toyosi Olusanya isn't fretting about rough treatment from opposition defenders. The Aberdeen striker is more concerned with adding to his goal tally.

Speaking before Sunday's Premiership visit of Rangers, Dons head coach Stephen Robinson said the 28-year-old gets "kicked from pillar to post" during matches.

In response, Olusanya said: "It is a tough game. I think the type of player I am, players maybe look at me, look at my style, and look to impose some sort of presence on myself through the game.

"But hopefully the referees make the right decision and it is just about focusing on ourselves and my game and just get up and dust yourself off.

"If you let it get to you on the pitch then that is when it becomes a problem. You just get up and brush it away, that is the best way to move forward with things."

After spending the second half of last season on loan from Houston Dynamo, Olusanya made the move to Aberdeen permanent earlier this summer.

While happy with his contribution to the team, the Englishman - who has scored once this term - would like to add a few more goals to his game.

He said: "I think it has been a decent start, I have managed to get off the mark in the cup game, I got an assist in the last cup game also.

"A few goal contributions, but I look at myself as a striker. I am always happy when I am hitting the back of the net so I will continue to work on that and hopefully improve on that in front of goal."

Image source, SNS

Australia striker Kusini Yengi is set to be among the players leaving Aberdeen in the coming days, head coach Stephen Robinson has confirmed.

The Dons have made 13 signings this summer, leaving a bloated squad that Robinson is striving to trim.

On the prospect of departures, he said: "There are some close, yeah.

"Lutz [Pfannenstiel, sporting director] and the recruitment boys are working away in the background on that, I think they have done a terrific job so far.

"And we are hoping that a couple of things will go through in the next two or three days."

Yengi, who had a spell on loan at Cerezo Osaka in the second half of last season, is reportedly heading back to the J-League, external for a season-long stint at Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

Asked if Yengi is among those set to exit, Robinson said: "Yeah, he is."

The Dons boss said there are "no updates" regarding the prospect of further signings, but is pleased to have Mats Knoester available again.

The Dutch defender hasn't featured since he injured his knee at Dundee in the final game of last term.

It remains to be seen whether Knoester will be in the squad for Sunday's Premiership visit of Rangers.

"I am delighted," said Robinson. "Since I came in he has had a few injury problems, he had some before I came and then got himself back fit again and unfortunately picked up that injury against Dundee so we have not seen the best of Mats yet.

"He is getting back to full fitness, had 45 minutes in the KDM Cup as well so he is on the road to recovery and is certainly a very good option for us again. He has trained now consistently for two to three weeks."

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Image source, SNS

Aberdeen head coach Stephen Robinson has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premiership visit of Rangers.

Here are the key lines:

• Robinson says it is a blow midfielder Brad Lyons will miss three to four weeks after minor knee surgery on his knee, but it "could have been a lot worse".

• After a long injury lay-off, Mats Knoester is available for Sunday's game, with Robinson saying the defender is "a very good option for us again".

• A decision on whether Knoester is fit enough to be on the bench will be made in the next 48 hours.

• Robinson confirmed striker Kusini Yengi, linked with a move to Japan, is among the players close to leaving the club. He adds on departures: "We are hoping a couple of things will go through in the next two or three days."

• On potential new signings: "There are no updates at this moment in time."

• Robinson doesn't think Rangers' European commitments are a disadvantage to the Ibrox club going into the game at Pittodrie.

• When asked if there is a vulnerability about Rangers, he says "we have to focus on ourselves first and foremost" but adds "every time you play Rangers it is a difficult game" and the Dons will have to be at their best.

• Robinson praises striker Toyosi Olusanya, saying: "He is an absolute handful to play against, gets kicked from pillar to post... he maybe doesn't get the protection because he is a strong boy and he tries to stay on his feet."

Image source, SNS

Aberdeen vice-captain Brad Lyons has been ruled out for three to four weeks after minor surgery on a knee injury.

The club say his rehabilitation is already under way and he is expected to return to action before the international break.

The Northern Ireland midfielder, who moved to Pittodrie from Kilmarnock this summer, started Aberdeen's first five games of the season but missed the past two through injury.

Aberdeen striker Kusini Yengi is set to return to Japan on loan after last season's stint at Cerezo Osaka. (Press and Journal, external)

Read the rest of Thursday's Scottish gossip.

Liam McLeod
BBC Sport Scotland Commentator

"We endorse that position because moving to a massive club like Rangers is a big step with concomitant risk."

A famous line from a Rangers statement in December 2017 which was in response to Derek McInnes' decision to remain as Aberdeen manager after weeks of fevered speculation he would make the switch to Ibrox.

The statement went on: "We will only appoint someone in whom we have full confidence and who feels he is ready for the job."

Then Dons chairman Stewart Milne was the happiest man in the country as his opposite number in Govan, Dave King, tried to fend off the flak that came with the snub with a thinly-veiled, withering jibe.

Close to a decade on, McInnes will this weekend take Rangers to Pittodrie for Sunday's high noon shootout in the Granite City.

Many Dons fans were left scarred by the episode given their manager had been given time off to weigh up the move as the players got ready for a big league game at Dundee without him.

The back pages were dominated by the story for weeks and it came to a head as the two clubs clashed in back-to-back matches in the space of a few days.

Rangers won both games.

Since McInnes left, the Dons' record in league games against Rangers has been poor with just three wins in 19 attempts, as Stephen Robinson tries to get the better of McInnes having done so a couple of times last season when the pair were at St Mirren and Hearts respectively.

Pittodrie won't be the place for those looking for a relaxing Sunday afternoon, with the former Dons boss unlikely to be given a warm welcome, but for the visitor it is a return to where that concomitant risk all began.

We asked for your views on what Aberdeen need in the final week of the transfer window.

Here are some of your comments:

Neil: Get a few more out the door then work with what we have. Turnover has been enormous. Many fans want to see young players given a chance. No loan signings has to be seen as positive. Squad should be good enough.

Scott: We need some grit in midfield, perhaps two players, as we're weak there. We need a winger who actually has pace, can beat a man, and can cross a ball (as Tony Yogane and Lewis Smith are hopeless). We need a strong back-up keeper.

Mark: I don't want us to sign someone just for the sake of it, they have to be the right player and be genuine competition to the players currently starting. It's clear we need legs in the middle of the park and I guess it all depends on whether Stephen Robinson thinks Kusini Yengi can be an option up front once fit. If not I would like us to add a fourth striker and see us playing more regularly with two up.

Justin: A player who can create chances and score goals from midfield would be great. But whatever the position they must play for the badge.

Peter S: I think there are a few players who are just there for wages and making very little impact. If we can get four or five of them shipped on then I'd like to get another one or two in with a view to possibly recalling one or both of the lads at ICT come second half of the season. We still need that midfielder that's going to pick out the players and dominate that midfield area.

Mark: I hope we sign Killian Phillips from St Mirren and another winger, maybe Danny Armstrong? Hope we get offers for Tobers, Gyamfi, Palaversa, Bilalovic and Yengi. That would reduce the squad size further.

Andrew Petrie
BBC Sport Scotland

With 13 players already through the entrance and 14 out the exit, it's been a busy old summer at Pittodrie.

Seemingly, head coach Stephen Robinson has opted to start from scratch when moulding his squad but there's still a few blank spots on an increasingly busy picture.

While fans may be keen for some energy in midfield and perhaps another winger, Robinson has stated publicly that he still has too many players at his disposal.

With a squad size of 28, the third biggest in the league, it is more likely the head coach will be flaunting his wares at the market, rather than adding to his squad.

What business do you think still needs to get done before 17:00 BST on 3 September? Let us know here.

Aberdeen have halted talks over a deal for Killian Phillips, with St Mirren wanting more than £500,000 for the Republic of Ireland midfielder. (Herald - subscription required), external

Read all of Tuesday's Scottish Gossip

Image source, SNS

Former Aberdeen winger Nicolas Milanovic says there was "never a brotherhood" at Pittodrie as he opens up on what went on behind the scenes during his time in the north east.

The 24-year-old joined the Dons from Australian outfit Western Sydney Wanderers last summer and made 23 appearances before returning to his former club last month.

Despite a turbulent campaign, that saw manager Jimmy Thelin sacked and the side embroiled in a relegation battle for the latter part of the season, the Dons avoided relegation as former St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson took over.

Speaking to the Unscripted podcast, Milanovic opened up on what he feels went wrong at Pittodrie last year.

"It was tough because it was never a brotherhood," he said.

"We signed over 20 different nationalities in the first team which is insane. Half the team doesn't speak English, the first coach was sacked and the coach now is Northern Irish, so there's loads of Northern Irish players coming in. It just changes so much.

"We were actually playing ok football we just couldn't put the ball in the net."

Liam McLeod
BBC Sport Scotland Commentator

In his pre-match interview on Saturday's Sportsound, you could sense Stephen Robinson had been irked by the week-long reaction to the league defeat in Dundee as he led Aberdeen into the last eight of the League Cup against the same opponents.

When asked if he'd been tempted to make wholesale changes to his starting XI his response was short and to the point: "No, we've lost one game in six."

And in fairness, his team turned the tables spectacularly with their second-half performance, in particular, much more like what Robinson wants to see on a regular basis.

Yes, Dundee had opportunities, but the Dons were well worth their 3-0 victory that set up a quarter-final in Kilmarnock next month.

Robinson will probably be frustrated this weekend's game at Fir Park has been postponed due to Motherwell's European commitments as he tries to build momentum in the league with the Dons' next outing against Rangers on Sunday week.

Captain Kevin Nisbet took his goal tally for the season to nine before August is out and he has timed that hot streak perfectly with a new Scotland manager now in post.

It is not rocket science, Nisbet comes to life in the opposition box and when he has had these sort of runs throughout his career, it is because supporting team-mates are putting the ball into that exact area. Tony Yogane, Toyosi Olusanya and debutant Mitchy Ntelo all played their part with the latter also getting on the scoresheet.

The Aberdeen boss would have preferred to have had home advantage for their quarter-final, but the reality is they are one game away from a return to Hampden.

Could Nisbet get his own Hampden return before that when Sebastian Pocognoli names his first Scotland squad for the upcoming Nations League fixtures? He has certainly put himself in the frame.

Image source, SNS

Out-of-favour striker Peter Ambrose has left Aberdeen to join Swiss second-tier club Neuchatel Xamax.

The 24-year-old Nigerian's last Dons appearance came 15 months ago and he spent the second half of last season on loan in Hungary with Diosgyor.

He departs having played 23 games for Aberdeen, scoring twice.

"Peter has found regular first-team football difficult to come by for some time, so we felt this was the right opportunity for him to move on and play more regularly," manager Stephen Robinson said.

"Peter leaves with our thanks for his efforts during his time at Aberdeen and our best wishes for the future."

Glen Schreuder
Fan writer

After a performance at Dens Park that caused a "cesspit of negativity" on social media, in the words of the manager, progression to the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals should bring a pond of positivity.

The first half might not have been clinical, or fully cohesive. It may well be more remembered for Marius Muller pulling out a rabona to clear the ball.

The second half, however, was much improved and more what we want to see from this Aberdeen side.

Debutant Mitchy Ntelo's stunning strike sandwiched by two goals from Kevin Nisbet sealed progression and provided confidence to players and fans alike.

With a weekend off Robinson and his troops must now work on delivering consistent levels of performance across the 90 minutes, especially with the Glasgow two up next.

Glen Schreuder can be found at Red Tinted Glasses, external

We asked for your views after Aberdeen progressed to the Scottish League Cup quarter-finals by beating Dundee 3-0 on Saturday.

Here's what some of you said:

Niall: What a difference a week makes. After a lowkey first half the Dons dominated the second half with three quality goals, Mitchy Ntelo the pick of the bunch - what a turn and finish. Stuart Armstrong looked really sharp and the intensity was so much better right to the final whistle. Onwards and upwards.

Scott: Overall a better performance than last week, but still a long, long way to go. Better teams will hammer us as we look soft at the back and in the middle.

Charlotte: In the 20 minutes Ntelo played in the number nine position, we played our best football. Looks like he can play with his back to goal, hold up and lay off, plus he has a decent pair of shooting boots. Looks a useful addition.

Adam: Not the perfect performance, but a much improved performance compared to Dens Park, where we were just outfought. Just did basics right today.

Mark: Easily the best performance since Stephen Robinson took over, particularly the second half. While there were a couple of moments in the first half where Dundee threatened, I don't share the view that they were the better side.

Aberdeen boss Stephen Robinson has hailed new signing Mitchy Ntelo as a "clinical" finisher and insists the best has yet to come from the Belgian. (Press and Journal), external

Read Saturday's Scottish football gossip

Captain Kevin Nisbet and debutant Mitchy Ntelo booked Aberdeen's place in the League Cup quarter-finals and exacted revenge on top-flight rivals Dundee for league defeat last weekend.

MATCH REPORT

HAVE YOUR SAY

Image source, SNS

Aberdeen manager Stephen Robinson: "It was a good performance. We've now won six games out of seven. A lot of good performances and a lot of stuff still to improve on.

"Any problems in the first half we caused ourselves just with a lack of communication. We were in control the last 15 minutes of the first half and the second-half performance was very good. You saw the confidence grow.

"If you're a striker, you want to hit the ground running. Super finish. [Mitchy Ntelo will] certainly get better with that game. As a striker, you want to start you career at Aberdeen with a goal and he certainly has. Everybody played their part."