Bojan Miovski scored a brace as Aberdeen produced a clinical performance to thrash Ross County and register their first win of the Scottish Premiership season.
There was little flow to either side's play during the opening exchanges. Returning defender James McGarry took an early knock and had to be replaced by Jonny Hayes. Niggly fouls and stoppages were guaranteed. The deadlock was broken on 21 minutes as Miovski netted his sixth goal of the season with an acrobatic finish from close range. The visitors did spur chances of their own to equalise before Duk was denied by Staggies goalkeeper Ross Laidlaw. The Cape Verde international would end his 14-game goal drought ahead of the half-time break as he capped off a lightning counter-attack started by Graeme Shinnie.
The hosts were applauded off by the majority of the 15,116 Pittodrie crowd after their first 45 effort while Malky MacKay's men had it all to do. And it was game set and match early into the second half when Jamie McGrath latched onto a Miovski pass to make it three without reply for Aberdeen. Then Miovski doubled his tally for the day by clinching a fourth with a powerful strike which secured maximum points for the Dons and sent the Staggies back north lamenting poor defending.
Here are five talking points from the convincing home victory.
Rotation pays off
Having been reinstated into the starting line-up, Duk looked much sharper than recent months with clever runs off the ball and in-behind the Ross County defence. He scored Aberdeen's second goal by showing impressive composure to finish an attack that began inside his own half. You could see how much it meant to him and the large Pittodrie faithful when the ball hit the net. Both Duk and the red hot Miovski were pivotal to the Reds' success last season and there were glimpses the formidable partnership was starting to click once again such as his sublime back-heel assist for the Dons fourth.
Scotland under-21s star Barron, was one of three changes to the starting XI, also showed maturity with his performance in midfield and made a case that he should be considered as a reliable option. Robson has built a large squad that compensates two players for each position and it's vital that he can trust those waiting in the fringes.Huge week ahead for Dons The hosts went into the clash without a win in six games and were crying out for a victory that could perhaps kick-start their league campaign. They have that monkey off their back now and move three points ahead of bottom side St Johnstone with all eyes firmly on climbing the table and into the all-important European places. Aberdeen have a huge Viaplay Cup quarter-final on the horizon too. A trip to Dingwall, where they will face Ross County once again, stands in the way of another Hampden Park appearance. With holders Celtic already knocked out of the competition, it presents a great chance for the Dons to lift silverware for the first time since 2014.Aberdeen improvement evident Robson has continuously reiterated that "they will be alright" and his new-look squad just needed time to gel. Perhaps we are starting to see that come to fruition. It wasn't razor sharp but there were certainly signs of improvement from Robson's players. They showed they could compete with recent Europa League winners and that has clearly given them confidence. McGrath netted his first Aberdeen goal while it will come as a relief to have fans favourite Duk back in among the goalscorers. A clean sheet will be deemed as a further bonus after conceding six during their previous three games.
Speaking at full-time, Robson beamed: "We performed at a really high level and we looked quick, aggressive and played the way we wanted to. I never thought the players lacked confidence as they played well in Europe and against Celtic here. Some other games caught us out but hopefully we have learnt to deal with the demands of Europe. It's hard to fight on all fronts and get it right but when we are at it we are a good side. The pleasing thing was that the football was good on the eye at times today and it's good when it flows like that. But we won't get carried away as we have won a game at home as we need to go up there and do the same again on Wednesday."
Staggies struggles Ross County hadn't lost at Pittodrie since December 2020. However, that run ended in emphatic fashion with an afternoon to forget. The Highlander's lacked a clinical edge throughout and rarely caused Aberdeen stopper Kelle Roos any serious trouble. They picked up numerous yellow cards and were lucky to end the game with 11 men on the pitch. Will Nightingale, Ryan Leak, Yan Dhanda and James Brown all escaped with cautions. MacKay will be hoping to witness better discipline and a more coherent showing on Wednesday.County can't dwell on result Visiting boss Mackay was quick to admit that his team weren't at the races as he urged an immediate response. He said: "Tomorrow morning we will go in and debrief that and then our focus the rest of Monday and Tuesday will be on Wednesday night. People can look at it both ways and say you've got more of the same coming or you've got the chance to actually go and give yourself a better account of yourself there. I certainly know what I want to do as far as that's concerned, and I know that the players have got that as well. We've got a good group of players and I'm conscious that we don't make as many poor decisions."
