You may have expected Pittodrie to be jumping with noise and energy this week after the Dons secured Premiership win number two out of two when they defeated Motherwell 3-1 on Sunday.
However, goalkeeper Jamie Langfield was quick to say that it has been fairly quiet in the north east, although he also added that it will be a whole lot nosier this Saturday when Derek McInnes’ side take on champions Celtic.
Langfield said: “Don’t get me wrong, it was a terrific result on Sunday, especially after going a goal down, but we had a lot of boys away with national sides this week. We had not won at Fir Park (n the league) for five years so it was a right good result, and we enjoyed it, but the squad was smaller in number this week so things have been very calm."
Ryan Jack and Clark Robertson were involved against England with the Scotland Under-21s in Sheffield. Cammy Smith and Lawrence Shankland played Northern Ireland with the under-19 squad while Joe Shaughnessy was in the Republic of Ireland squad for their under-21 Euro qualifier clash in the Faroe Islands.
Langfield added: “Niall McGinn was also away helping Northern Ireland get a terrific result in their World Cup clash against Russia in Belfast. Some boys are nursing knocks after two hard games so it has been a case of just quietly going about things but with a sense of determination to keep going well.”
That determination to be quiet but effective was summed up by Langfield when he added: “Also we have not done anything to get overly excited about yet anyway.”
After eight years at the Dons Langfield is preaching caution about his side having a season full of positive headlines as he said: “Beating Kilmarnock and Motherwell bodes well for the rest of the campaign but I have seen a few good starts during my time here and they were never got built on. No-one is getting carried away and the manager will certainly not let anyone get ahead of themselves.
“Whilst it was great to win a couple of games, we are only looking forward to facing Celtic now.”
As if to ensure feet remain on the ground Langfield added: “We lost a goal against Motherwell after about 40 seconds without me having a touch of the ball. Sometimes that happens before you get into action and it brought back memories of actually losing a quicker goal against Celtic at Parkhead last season.
“In that game we recovered well and were actually 3-1 ahead before losing 4-3. We played really well that day after losing that goal but we let them back into the game. We know what they can do to teams so again that is another reason for not getting overly excited about saying we are going to do this or do that.”
Celtic have been cruel opponents to the Dons in recent seasons with two cup semi-final defeats as well as several high scoring losses and Langfield said: “We do not have a good record against Celtic but this is a new season so we are starting afresh. Our confidence levels have gone up and there will be a packed Pittodrie for what should be a really good game. It would be great to show Celtic the same level of performance that we showed in the opening two games.”
The increased confidence at the club has seen the ‘Red Army’ willing to back McInnes’ men to such an extent that they have decided to open the top tier of the Richard Donald Stand to let more fans in. During the summer it was decided to close it in a move designed to have the fans in the one area to generate a better atmosphere - however in just their second home match it is in use again.
The Pittodrie players appreciate the backing as Langfield explained: “Having to re-open part of the Richard Donald Stand means a lot to the players. I know the potential here and other players who have come on board now know the potential as well.
“After a good pre-season and a couple of wins, we are drawing the fans back. Once you do that you need to put on good performances to keep them coming back. All we have done so far is give ourselves a good foundation for the season ahead but we are not kidding ourselves that we have done anymore however it is great to get the backing we do.”
Langfield added: “A couple of wins and a couple of good performances and the people of Aberdeen get excited. They are right to as there has been a fair amount of doom and gloom over recent years. Sometimes it has been difficult to keep the spirits high but not just now even if we were low on numbers.”
One of the reasons Aberdeen and their fans are growing in excitement has been the form of summer capture from Dundee United, Willo Flood.
Langfield is not surprised by Flood’s emergence as top Don in their opening games: “I have seen lots of players come and go here and it is no surprise to me that Willo Flood has made a positive impact already. I was surprised that we got him as he was always a stand out for me and it was a cracking piece of business by the manager.
“Dundee United always had strikers that grabbed the headlines with the likes of David Goodwillie, Jonny Russell and Jon Daly but Willo was always the main man there for me. He has been great in the first two games and I am not surprised that the fans are saying that we have got some player here now.”
Asked if the prospect of a win over the champions had even been discussed Langfield replied: “We do not think of ourselves as challengers and we will simply take every game as it comes. If we go out and do something against Celtic then that is another three points but what is more important to everyone here is being in a good position come the start of the run in February and March time.
“The intensity of the performance is important to everyone and we have hit the right level of intensity in the last two games. We have created a lot of chances and could have scored more goals but mind you we are not daft as it is Celtic we are playing.
“We cannot expect to create the same amount of chances but we are going into it with confidence and that is a good feeling.”
Craig Stewart
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