Jimmy Thelin says Aberdeen have hit 'rock bottom' as beleaguered boss finds Tannadice ally

Goodwin knows exactly how Thelin is feeling. He endured the same chants from opposition fans while he was with Aberdeen. The home supporters mercilessly sang “Sacked in the morning!” at Thelin as Dundee United enjoyed a deserved 2-0 win over Aberdeen, who have still to score in the league this season and remain in bottom place.

“I know what the man is going through and I sympathise with any manager that finds themselves that situation,” said Goodwin, whose side are now third in the league. “We were all talking about Hibs and David Gray around October and November last year when they were bottom of the table. David found a way to get a tune out of the team and they were the third best team in the country last season.

“Aberdeen have invested well, they spent a fortune in the summer, and that’s why I was a little bit nervous coming into this game to be honest because the run can’t continue with the quality they have. We were on a bit of a hiding to nothing because everyone as expecting to win but when you are playing quality opposition, that doesn’t always happen. But I’m sure Jimmy will respect that my concern isn’t Aberdeen.”

Despite the sense it has to end sooner or later, Aberdeen’s horror run is continuing. Their season does not get any easier with a trip to Fir Park to play in-form Motherwell coming up on Saturday. Thelin announced that his side have now reached “rock bottom” and they have nothing to lose this weekend. The manager and his players spent some significant time applauding the away fans at the end as they very deliberately showed they were prepared to accept the criticism that was coming their way.

What Thelin had to say

“You see the frustration and anger among the fans,” said Thelin. “They are fans of Aberdeen Football Club and right now we have one point and no goals so far this season. We have big expectations and higher goals than where we are right now. So we feel the same. We feel anger, we feel frustration. But the only way to fix it is to step up and do much, much better on Saturday. We can’t hide.”

The Swede described his team as “quite stiff” due to the nervousness and pressure that is building as the goalless run goes on. He singled out Stuart Armstrong as one of those who is trying his best to lead the team out of the mire. Club skipper Graeme Shinnie was dropped for this outing and did not even make an appearance off the bench. Thelin explained that the midfielder was being rested for Saturday and the game had "taken a different direction" by the time he might have thought about putting him on. Leighton Clarkson, who was also absent, had been the "21st player" in the squad. Again, he will be needed for the weekend, he stressed.

“We saw Stuart Armstrong,” Thelin added. “He wanted the ball, he used his experience. If he missed a pass, he takes the ball again and finds his composure.

“On Saturday, we have nothing to lose and everything to win,” he added. “We have to step out and find the answer. As a staff and manager we have to find the answer really quickly now, because the game is on Saturday.”

Asked why a reaction was missing following Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Motherwell in the Premier Sports Cup, Thelin said that United’s goals arrived at difficult times – just before half time, and then five minutes into the second half. Aberdeen were always chasing the game.

“We can’t talk more now, we have to show our fans,” he accepted. “They are travelling, they are supporting. We get the frustration. We can’t say anything about that. It’s not good enough. Either you hide or you step out.

“We were expecting a much better performance today. Now we have some more days. We are last in the table, zero points. No goals. You have nothing to lose. You have to step out onto the pitch and play much more without this tension. We do not live up to expectations just now. We are already there. Rock bottom. All we can do is do better. We can’t go deeper. Hopefully we get the tension out of our bodies and push as a team and find a result.”