Aberdeen manager Stephen Robinson expressed satisfaction with his side's display despite a narrow 1-0 defeat to Eredivisie outfit FC Twente in Goor, Netherlands, on Saturday. The pre-season clash saw Toyosi Olusanya squander a golden opportunity from inside the six-yard box, but Robinson focused on the positives from the match.
Olusanya's Miss and Penalty Claim
The Dons' striker Toyosi Olusanya was guilty of one of the misses of pre-season when he stole the ball from Twente goalkeeper Yannick Gerritsen but blazed over the bar with the goal at his mercy. Robinson also felt his team should have been awarded a penalty when Olusanya went down in the box earlier in the second half. Despite these incidents, the manager was pleased with the overall performance.
Robinson's Reaction
Speaking after the game, Robinson said: "It was certainly a test against a top level side. We wanted to be tested, you want to find out what you need to fix and see the fitness levels of the boys. It was a good performance. Really solid and organised. We pressed well at times, we should have scored two or three goals and possibly had a penalty as well, I've been told."
He added: "Now it's about resting and recuperating and going back fresh – but it's certainly been a very good week. I thought Connor (Ronan) was excellent. The two boys at centre-back were great as well, so were the whole back four in the first half. Some of the out-of-possession stuff was really, really good. We need to learn that when you're defending for so long against a team at that level, you need to keep the ball better."
New Signings Impress
Robinson's starting XI featured several new signings, including Dan Happe and Alexander Briedl, who formed the heart of the back four. The duo impressed, as did Connor Ronan in midfield. A raft of second-half changes for both sides disrupted the flow of the game, but Robinson was encouraged by what he saw.
He remarked: "We can play the easy games and win 3-0 or 4-0, but that's not what we want. We want to push people. There was a lot of good stuff to come out of today."
Further Recruitment Planned
Robinson used seven of his new signings in the friendly defeat but confirmed he is not finished strengthening the squad. He told Red TV: "You can see the team bonding together now. You can see that with the new boys coming in and being welcomed. I still think there's two or three positions that we need to finish off the squad. Everyone's aware of that. We'll continue to look to improve."
Match Details
Lucas Venegoor of Hesselink, son of former Celtic striker Jan Venegoor of Hesselink, scored the only goal of the game for Twente. The match was played in front of a crowd of 1,000, with around 100 Aberdeen fans making the trip to Eastern Holland.
Aberdeen team: Mitov (Suman 46), Devlin (Lobban 67), Happe (Milne 62), Briedl (Palaversa 67), Molloy (Frame 67), Yogane (Bilalovic 62), Lyons (Aremu 46), Mayo (Devlin 86), Ronan (Marshall 62), Keskinen (Stewart 67), Nisbet (Olusanya 46).
