Peter Leven has revealed how studying San Siro giants Inter Milan helped Aberdeen's coaching staff mastermind a Scottish Cup Final victory over Celtic in May 2025. Despite a roaring start to the season under Jimmy Thelin where they won 10 and drew one of their first 11 league matches, the Dons' form tailed off, and they ended up scraping into the top six with a fifth place finish.
Tactical shift before Hampden showdown
In the lead-up to their Hampden showdown with the Hoops, Aberdeen suffered consecutive defeats to Rangers, Dundee United and Celtic, shipping five goals to Brendan Rodgers' side in a league clash at Pittodrie just 10 days before the final. And in an exclusive chat with Record Sport's In Conversation series, former Reds number two and caretaker manager Leven has revealed how watching tapes of Serie A champions Inter at Cormack Park prompted Thelin and his backroom team to shake up their tactical approach for the trip to the national stadium.
He said: "We were sitting in the office nine days before the final and were thinking 'we've lost 19 goals to Celtic this season playing a 4-3-3. Do we go to a back five or stay with a four? We did okay against Celtic at the start of the season with a 2-2 draw (at Parkhead) with a 4-4-3. So we sat there, no joke, from 7-7.30am to 8-9pm at night. We went home and we were still texting each other saying 'no, we can't go with a four, we'll go with a five'."
Choosing the Inter Milan model
Leven explained: "So we sat and we watched Inter Milan and Crystal Palace playing a five. They were the two teams we watched and thought 'which one do we want to go with?' Crystal Palace jumped with their two eights (midfielders) in the press while Inter jumped with their number six in the press and their eights went out the way instead of vertical. So we ended up with going with the Inter Milan one. We looked at them and thought that was going to work. And in hindsight it did. We had just been battered 5-1 by Celtic and we knew something had to change. It was brave of the gaffer to do it."
Aberdeen triumphed with a penalty shootout victory over the Hoops after a late own goal from Kasper Schmeichel sent the final into extra time. "What an amazing day it was", Leven recalled. "The best day I have ever had in football. I'm still waiting for my medal though! Only the manager and the players get one. The fans were unbelievable, I've never seen anything like it. And then back up in Aberdeen, it was incredible to have my wife and my daughter there. I'd won five trophies as a coach before abroad but had nobody there to experience it. It was special."
Leven's pride despite difficult ending
Leven's final stint as interim Aberdeen boss came during a difficult period last season following Thelin's sacking in early January. A huge number of players were turned over in the winter window but Leven was unable to replicate his previous success as Dons manager at the back end of the 2023/24 campaign, winning just three of 12 matches in all competitions. In his final game at the helm, he oversaw a disastrous 3-0 exit to Dunfermline in the quarter final of the Scottish Cup, and left the club shortly after Stephen Robinson's appointment in the dugout.
Leven is gutted with the way it ended for him at Pittodrie but is still immensely proud of his three years in the Granite City, having initially joined Barry Robson's coaching staff in the summer of 2023. "It was really sad the way it went that day at Dunfermline, we just didn't turn up", he added. "I'll take the flak for that one and learn from it. I had great times in my three years up there. My missus said she even misses my wee flat in Westhill. I made sure I phoned all the staff at Cormack Park after I left to thank them. I've made friends for life up there. There are unbelievable people up there who I have got a lot of admiration for. They are a club that I will always look out for and want to do well. They are a part of me now. Hopefully the manager, staff and players there now can experience what I experienced by winning a trophy."
