Former Hearts captain praises his 'jobby team' after breaking 22-year Aberdeen curse amid form revival
The former Hearts captain came under pressure but he and his team are now copping plaudits.
Steven Pressley has praised his ‘jobby’ Dundee side after the former Hearts captain guided them to a major Premiership win at Aberdeen.
The Dark Blues won in the Granite City for the first time in 22 years after a topsy-turvy clash. Kevin Nisbet opened the scoring for the home side at Pittodrie before Liam Morrison was sent off for a controversial denial of a goalscoring opportunity by VAR, former Hibs striker Simon Murray converting the subsequent penalty.
Joe Cotterill fired Dundee into the lead before half-time before ex-Hibee Nisbet blasted in a terrific free-kick. That strike was to be better by Ethan Hamilton’s goal of the season contender that moved ex-Hearts skipper Pressley’s side six points away from 11th-placed Kilmarnock, the relegation play-off spot occupier.
What did Steven Pressley say after Aberdeen 2-3 Dundee?
Pressley came in for heavy criticism in the first half of the season but has slowly started to win fans and onlookers over with improved performances and results. He’s now taken a tongue in cheek approach to some of the doubters, as he insisted his ‘jobby’ team is doing not too bad after a curse-busting afternoon. They have already defeated Celtic and taken a point at Rangers this term.
He said: “I love throwing statistics at the players. I do it all the time because these stats should motivate us. For a jobby team we've broken some good records this season, so well done to the players. It's a really important win. Our performances over the last three months have been at a really high level.
"It probably wasn't as high a performance today, but most importantly we found that way to win. I don't ever talk to the group about anything further than the next game. I just think with where we are, what we've had to endure, this jobby team staying in the league would be a good achievement. Ethan has been an amazing signing for us.
Peter Leven on Aberdeen 2-3 Dundee
"Initially we played him in the number eight role and now we're playing him in more of a number six position, but with a licence to break from there. He's really responded to that well. He's not just a really good player, he's a really good personality and he's certainly a winner.
"He's been a pivotal player for us and hopefully with the growth of the team he can be a major part of that. It's three in two games for Simon. We were hoping if he scored it would be like buses and it seems to be the case. We're really pleased for him. I know how hard he works. I know how much it means to him."
Interim Aberdeen head coach Peter Leven said: “I thought at times we were good in the second half. We get it back to 2-2 and it's got to be a point in that game. We turn the ball over too easy, we've got to go up the line and gain territory. But we gave it away and don't defend the shot. We've got to take out chances and go two or three up but we get a wee bit nervy and stop doing what we did early on. That's two red cards in two games - it's not good enough.”