Marius Muller produced a superb treble save and a stoppage-time stop on his Aberdeen debut, earning praise from manager Stephen Robinson, who declared the German is now in a direct battle with Dimitar Mitov for the No.1 goalkeeper jersey. The Dons edged Queen's Park 2-1 in the Premier Sports Cup, making it two wins from two in the group stage.
Muller's Heroics Secure Victory
The 25-year-old, signed from Wolfsburg earlier this week, was thrown straight into the starting lineup. In the second half, he made a remarkable triple save before denying Lewis Stewart in injury time to preserve Aberdeen's lead. Robinson highlighted the importance of the late stop: “I think that (stoppage time save) was the best out of the four of them. We shouldn’t need that. We should score at the other end and then they break. The game should be out of sight. He hasn’t done himself any harm with his performance.”
No Guaranteed Starting Spots
Mitov was Aberdeen's first-choice keeper last season, but Robinson insisted no player is assured of playing time. “Marius showed what a fantastic goalkeeper he is. We were hoping he didn’t have to show it. That is why we brought him in. Everybody here is fighting for their place. I don’t guarantee anyone that they will play. I don’t sign players and tell them they are guaranteed to play,” Robinson said. He added that Muller, like Nesta Guiness-Parker, is not yet fully match-fit after missing pre-season, but the team must balance fitness with winning games.
Fast Start Fades for Dons
Aberdeen took an early lead through Dan Happe and Lewis Smith, but dropped off in the second half, allowing Queen's Park to pull one back. Robinson was pleased with the quick start but frustrated by the dip: “There were a lot of positives. There were some fantastic performances from the new players. But if you stop doing the simple things, after 45 minutes we stopped doing that and taking things for granted. We made the game hard for ourselves.” He stressed the need to improve fitness and take chances, noting set plays will be vital this season.
Queen's Park Boss Reflects
Queen's Park manager Sean Crighton felt his side deserved something from the match after a strong second-half display. “I think with our second half performance we could have taken something. My biggest frustration was the early goals we lost. The belief we showed in the second half was night and day. We were unlucky in the end and should have got something out of it,” Crighton said. He praised young Lewis Stewart for nearly scoring at the death, calling Muller's save “unbelievable” when watching the replay. Queen's Park face Queen of the South in their final group game, with Crighton urging his team to carry their second-half belief forward.
