Kelle Roos has taken the Aberdeen goalie gloves off Joe Lewis but insists the former Dons captain remains one of the most important voices in the Pittodrie dressing room.
And he reckons Lewis has shown his class by the manner in which he is trying to help his ‘rival’ settle into life in the Granite City. Roos, one of a host of players signed by Jim Goodwin in the summer, has quickly become a fans’ favourite at Aberdeen. The Dutchman admits he’s loving every minute of the Premiership after spending eight years in the English lower leagues.
The keeper, signed from Derby County, believes his new team will get even better as they get to know each other on and off the pitch – and has pinpointed Lewis as being pivotal to that process. He said: “For goalkeepers it’s always the case that there is only one who can play but we work together very well. You guys might not see Joe with the captain’s band this season on the pitch.
“But in the dressing room he is still very much one of the key figures. Joe has been brilliant with me and I have really enjoyed working with him. I hope it is the same from Joe towards me.”
Former St Mirren and Kilmarnock No.1 Craig Samson is the goalkeeping coach at Pittodrie and Roos insists there’s a great atmosphere in training. He said: “With the coach included, we bounce off each other very well. Hopefully we can bring each other to higher levels.”
That goes for the entire team and while the Dons have received plenty of plaudits, Roos believes there is far more to come. He added: “We get a little bit carried away if we say we clicked instantly. I feel there is still so much to come. For us there is another level to go to if it comes to the nitty-gritty parts of the game.
“On the ball we can be a very good team and a very fluent team. Other teams are probably looking at us and thinking that they do not want to get a man sent off against us because it would take them down.
“But at the same time with the quality we have and the things I see on the training ground, we can still go to another level. That is what we are working to do. We are in a good place but there is more to come.”
Sitting third at the moment, the 30-year-old admits European football next season is very much on his radar. Any player wants to be in Europe and it was definitely one of the pulling factors of the club,” he said. “I could hopefully be pushing for European football here.
“We need to take it week by week but at the same time these goals are good to have. Looking at all the European games it would be very exciting if we could be part of it.
“I’m really enjoying it. I‘ve played the majority of my football in England, in the Championship and League One and Two. I feel like I have settled in pretty fast and want to keep doing my job as well as I can.”
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