BobbyBiscuit

Red Final Tweet from yesterday, after the game: Rooney's stats so far: Starts: 106 Sub apps: 22 Goals: 67 (15 penalties) No. of games scored in: 56 Bettering a goal every other game. Thought he looked sharper against Motherwell and the same again yesterday. Was delighted to see him get the goal yesterday, great poacher's finish and like all good strikers he was the first to react.

Because Ash Taylor was in the original line up???

I think you're seeing more than most of us chief.

Captain Morgan's spiced rum. Gone down very well today watching the football scores coming in, getting a coupon up and then watching some old Dons games on YouTube. Happy Christmas all!

...is the right answer. His solo stuff was guff too. His duet stuff was garbage as well. Seemed like a decent chap though.

O'Connor in for Taylor for me, please. McLean in that same position and Jonny and Niall supplying Rooney will see us win comfortably. Bring on a fragile Hertz team...

Much better, 2nd half in particular. Kenny McLean was really good, looking much more confident and comfortable in that more advanced position. Shinnie also played well and the three Irish boys looked a lot sharper, and as a result, we look much more threatening. Still need to up our game overall and the defence still worried me but tonight was a step in the right direction, thankfully and at last. Folk saying Jack could have walked for a lunge at McDonald or Lasley but i didn't see it at the time. Anything in it?

Nonsense. Get it played.

Don't think anyone is disappointed or apathetic about him staying, he's a good player but he's certainly not as good as you're making out above. As I mentioned, the end product is missing with him and if him staying means we miss out on a more industrious player for the middle of the park then that means the team remains unbalanced. Is that worth him staying, in all honesty?

"we are still building" yet there seems to be absolutely no signs of progress. In fact, we're regressing, stagnating at best.

It's really a different type of midfielder that we need and this happening will probably mean we don't resolve that issue. Maddison's a good player but we're not seeing enough end product from him.

A failing of the u-20 set up rather than Paul Sheerin. The reserve league used to provide younger players with nous as they were playing against older, more experienced players more often, thus preparing them for first team football. All that happens now is that the boys are playing against the same players they've always played against, by and large. At some point, that isn't going to teach you anything new, and if/when you get into the first team, too much of it is too new and for certain players, its too much for them and they can't cope. The base skills may be there, but there's too much of a gap in "nous" between them and their colleagues and opponents. I went along to Aberdeen v Hamilton u-20s two seasons ago at New Douglas Park. We lost 4-1 or 4-2. Shankland and Brophy were the outstanding players on the park. In fact, Shankland's all round display was fantastic, scored a cracking goal, held the ball up superbly and he looked like the 6th year playing against the 1st year kids. Gets into the first team at the Dons and it looks as though he's hardly kicked a ball in his life and is now struggling to get a start at a horrendous St Mirren team. A lot of that must be down to the lack of a proper first team preparation. It's no coincidence either that the majority of that league winning side are no longer at Pittodrie. A lot of those boys were coming on for 20, so they either have to go into the first team squad or be released. A few of them in the days of the reserve league would probably have been kept on to see how they progressed, but the club then has a snap decision to make. The whole system is flawed from start to finish.

Wouldn't touch Cummings with a barge pole. He's not that great (when he has an off day, he really has an off day) and potentially a disruptive influence if the rumours are to be believed.

Don't think there's any danger of him getting the dunt this season. Would imagine the only way we'll see the back of hi is if another club comes in for him, the chances of which isn't good considering our form. i'm really fed up with him. Going to Motherwell on Friday, planning on going to Accies on the 27th too. Not particularly looking forward to either, fully aware it will be more of the one dimensional turgid stuff. Ho hum...

Storey chucked on with 5 mins to go. Boy hasn't kicked a ball in 7 weeks or so - asking a lot for him to turn that game for us. word is that Storie is going on loan to St Mirren.

Not necessarily talking about now, but in years past - McMaster, McDougall, Black, Grant, Robertson etc. I don't think it's necessarily a conscious thing, but that doesn't change the fact that we've had a fair few players who deserved more international recognition. I'm sure plenty of other teams fans will feel the same about some of their players over the years as well. I struggle with the concept of patriotism/nationalism anyway, seeing some more of our lads in there may have increased my interest somewhat.

Several national team managers haven't given a fuck about Aberdeen and the players deserving of international recognition, so why should Aberdeen fans give a fuck about the national team? Maybe that's a question for another thread however.

Such a dismal showing in the cup final is bound to have that effect. It was heartless. That game and the following week at the Bronx led many to question the manager, and maybe they hadn't done so previously. Those two matches were the crux of DM's deficiencies. His blind spots were laid bare and he was punished for them. However, I would actually say this malaise started last January. We were in with a chance of the title but didn't strengthen where we had to - goalkeeper and midfield. DM rightly thought Scott Brown was not good enough to start the season as no.1, but bizarrely thought he was good enough to finish it as no1. We were in a position of strength and its vital to strengthen from there, but its led to this nothingness from the team because there are too many players far too comfortable. Too many aren't being pushed to prove they are worthy of that starting spot. The exception to this it seems is: McInnes will drop Rooney if he's not scoring. Stockley goes into the exact same system and doesn't score. So he gets dropped for Rooney and round and round we go. Here's a thought... maybe it's the system that's at fault, which leads into.... Fans are restless because we're not making the most of our resources and frankly, we're pish to watch far too often. Two holding CMs at home to the likes of Partick and Ross County, little to no pace in the side either in terms of movement or how quickly we shift the ball, only attacking full back on one flank because our other full back is in centre midfield for some fucking reason and there is no drive in the middle of the park. There is no one to get us up out our seat if Jonny Hayes and Niall McGinn are off form, which they have been for large chunks of the season. The set up is very reliant on those two playing well. If they don't, we won't create and we will be horrendous to watch. If only the manager had signed some alternative options to those two in the summer... oh, wait...

Probably little to do with the player being precious and everything to do with McInnes's mismanagement of McGinn after the Euros. Signs Storey, Stockley and Burns as back up, but insists on McGinn playing in Europe for us as the new signings twiddle their thumbs on the bench. Long term effect is that McGinn looks knackered.

How do you know they're bargains? Just because we didn't pay anything for them in way of a transfer fee doesn't mean we're getting value for money in terms of wages.

I think he wanted it, I just think he over-estimated himself in terms of what he can bring to that role.

O'Connor.

Keep - McGinn and Considine Maybe - Pawlett and Jack Out - Taylor Jack will be a maybe as I don't see a better alternative (for him) coming in for him. Pawlett - can be a good player for us and give us an alternative option to the pedestrian midfield we can be at times, but if another, better alternative came up in the market, I'd move him on. McGinn - been badly managed this season. Should have been ordered to go on holiday for a few weeks after the Euros. This is now coming back to bite us on the arse. Consi - he's a decent SPFL standard defender. Would be very harsh on him if we were to cut him loose now. Taylor - carthorse.

I didn't say there weren't successes - he's signed some really good players for us. I said the market is bloated which it undoubtedly is, which makes it harder to get value for money. Zola was an utter disaster, and he wasn't a loan. But I'm not sure why you're discounting loans, maybe to bolster the argument you thought you were having with me... Stockley has hardly been a rip-roaring success, in fact I'll probably never forgive him for his miss last Saturday. Why would you deliberately cut down your signing options when the world is as small as it's ever been?

Would imagine a "Scouting Network" would also involve paying wages for scouts.