Management Q&A Session - Monday 22nd February - Highlights posted.

[Tyrant]

Q&A session for black and gold season ticket holders. Anyone going? Worth going? Any burning questions we should ask?

[BobbyBiscuit]

Any burning questions we should ask?

 

'You continue to play Rooney off a wide position - you recently bought a centre forward who is in no way anywhere near as good as Rooney. Would it not have made more sense to buy a natural wide player and play Rooney through the middle?'

 

'Ash Taylor - WTF?'

[scotfree]

It would be good to find out the real story of the last transfer window shenanigans.

[rocket_scientist]

Why did you pay wages to Calvin Zola?

 

Don't you think it's a better strategy to watch players first before giving them money?

 

[manc_don]

'You continue to play Rooney off a wide position - you recently bought a centre forward who is in no way anywhere near as good as Rooney. Would it not have made more sense to buy a natural wide player and play Rooney through the middle?'

 

'Ash Taylor - WTF?'

 

Very much this.  Hope some decent questions get asked tonight

[Tyrant]

Allow me to try and put down some highlights. This is taken all from my notoriously poor memory but I'll try and make it as accurate as possible. It won't necessarily be in order.

 

Derek McInnes, Ryan Jack and Tommy Docherty were on the panel. Initial questions were pre-submitted and read out by the host. (Had I been aware that we could pre-submit questions I would have done so but I wasn't). After the pre-submitted questions were done the floor was opened up for questions. It was very busy. Full house of around 200 I think.

 

Started off with a question about training facilities. DM and TD came across a particularly frustrated at the lack of progress being made and having to rely on public places for facilities. DM and RJ feel that if players had their own facility they could practice what they want when they want. DM recalled an instance where he wanted to go over some set play training during recent bad weather but was severely restricted for time at the Sports Village. DM said that the board were working hard on this but it was clear he was pissed off about it. All 3 feel that Aberdeen have some of the worst facilities in the league and it may prove pivotal when competing with the likes of Hearts and Hibs for players. 

 

DM blames Steven MacLean and Jamie Langfield for "not doing their jobs" the day that Motherwell pipped us to 2nd in the league and consigned us to a June tie in the Europa League. TD doesn't feel that'll be an issue this year as "we'll be in the Champions League".  RJ admitted the the players do talk about possibly winning the league but are trying to take it one game at a time.

 

DM is very surprised that Draper wasn't booked for diving or that retrospective action wasn't taken against him. Feels there were 4 bookable offences committed by him on Monday's game. DM knows Aberdeen weren't good enough but also pointed out that had decisions gone by the book we'd have got something from the game. Team stayed in Glasgow on Thursday night and were disappointed by the late call off of Friday's game but on the other hand weren't keen for conditions to dictate the outcome of the game.

 

DM vehemently defended his policy of not leaving anyone up the park when defending corners. Seemed a little irked by the question. He gave a fairly in depth tactical explanation and said that the aim at that point is to stop the opposition from scoring. He feels we have players like Johnny Hayes and Niall McGinn (and "Not so much Jacko") that can break with pace and hurt opponents. DM said this is a policy that won't be changing.

 

DM wants Shay Logan to stay and has agreed to postpone contract talks until later in the season but won't hang on for ever for a decision. DM feels Logan is the best right back in the league.

 

DM feels the atmosphere at Pittodrie isn't as good as it could be. He was trying to be diplomatic but it was clear he thought the fans were too quiet. TD and RJ both name Tynecastle as their favourite ground for atmosphere. DM is in favour of singing sections and thinks they should be behind the goals. DM said that opposition managers' aim is often to get the Pittodrie crowd on our players' backs. DM feels that with the crowds we get we could be making this far more difficult for opposition.

 

DM revealed that Liverpool compensated AFC for taking Danny Ward back early and that we were paying him "peanuts". DM said that English clubs and agents often ask for guarantees for their players which they're generally not able/willing to provide. DM and TD both spoke highly of Danny Rodgers and said that he features in their plans if he continues to improve/develop. DM spoke of the "football decision" that was getting rid of Jim Leighton who he remains on good terms with. 

 

DM recalls the Europa League tie in Croatia as his highlight of the season so far where as RJ recalls the win over Celtic in September at Pittodrie.

 

 

I'm sure there's a lot more that I can't remember off the top of my head. I'll post stuff as I remember it.

 

Ryan Jack was wearing skinny jeans.

[tlg1903]

Nice one tyrant, thanks for that

[manc_don]

Ryan Jack was wearing skinny jeans.

 

Glad you got all the important aspects of the night 

 

Glad to hear he's pushing the chairman for the facilities. It is an absolute embarrassment.

[rocket_scientist]

Glad to hear he's pushing the chairman for the facilities. It is an absolute embarrassment.

 

It has been an embarrassment for a very long time.

 

When the chairman took over three decades back, we might have expected a locally-based property developer to be uniquely positioned to fix this glaring gap in our infrastructure. The fact that he hasn't offers more proof that "the football side of the business" (as he called it) isn't his main priority.

[Tyrant]

There were one or two questions which I felt were a waste of time. One of the pre-submitted questions was a guy asking "what he should work on" as a midfielder and that he already had a good fitness level. Well good for you, pal but if you're "a midfielder" and need Ryan Jack to tell to work on your passing and first touch then you're a shite midfielder and you should be wasting abody's time with such shite.

 

Another mannie asked about what the club was doing to attract alternate investment with the downturn in ile and gas. Nae a bad question but more one for a board member and not the team manager although Derek did a good job of diplomatically answering. 

[Tyrant]

DM was asked to discuss other managers he gets on with and others who he doesn't. He seemed keen to answer the question but declined when he was told that this session was going out to RedTV.

 

I'd bet Ronny Delia and Robbie Neilson are amongst the ones he doesn't like.

[LA-Don]

Nobody asked about the most recent transfer window and the lack of players coming in?

[Tyrant]

Nobody asked about the most recent transfer window and the lack of players coming in?

 

No one asked specifically about the transfer window just passed, no. A question was asked about future transfer policy. Just got a standard answer. Targets identified and we've spoken to some but no names given unsurprisingly.

[manc_don]

No one asked specifically about the transfer window just passed, no. A question was asked about future transfer policy. Just got a standard answer. Targets identified and we've spoken to some but no names given unsurprisingly.

 

I am surprised by that, I would have thought someone would have asked about the failings of this transfer window. Or even the last.

[Edinburghdon]

I am surprised by that, I would have thought someone would have asked about the failings of this transfer window. Or even the last.

 

That's assuming that (the Tansey move breaking down aside) DM had any failings based on their planned activities.

[manc_don]

That's assuming that (the Tansey move breaking down aside) DM had any failings based on their planned activities.

 

I don't disagree with that entirely, however there are glaring issues within this team that need to be sorted and enable us to push on. These were not addressed in this nor the last transfer window 

 

If the plan is to allow the youth more of a chance, fair enough, but I cannot see anyone stepping up and helping Rooney.

[BobbyBiscuit]

Would also have liked someone to have asked him why he tends to shop in the same places all the time... (for the first team, anyway)

[Edinburghdon]

I don't disagree with that entirely, however there are glaring issues within this team that need to be sorted and enable us to push on. These were not addressed in this nor the last transfer window 

 

If the plan is to allow the youth more of a chance, fair enough, but I cannot see anyone stepping up and helping Rooney.

 

There are issues that need to be addressed, totally agree... Doesn't mean McInnes identified or even tried to sign anyone barring church and Tansey though. It's always difficult to get quality and value in January, maybe he just wanted to trust the squad he has and works with every day and wait for his first choice signings in the summer  rather than signing players that would have been stopgap or 2nd/3rd choice signings.

 

He could have just as easily made a mess of the transfer window though, just putting forward an alternative view to the one that seems to be commonly accepted.

[BobbyBiscuit]

With the disastrous news that Adam Rooney is out, there really looks like DM has mismanaged the squad.  Hindsight is wonderful etc, but let's face it, most of us have said for a while that if Rooney, Hayes or McGinn get injured we're screwed. Now two of them are injured and we really are going to struggle and i think yesterday showed this. A laboured performance with little to no cutting edge.

 

I know DM won't do this as he now has Church but my preferred solution to the Rooney absence would be for McGinn to be played right through the middle. He's done it before for us in a far poorer team and succeeded. I think we'll have a better chance of winning matches with him there than Church.