Latest news with #DimitarMitov
BBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Aberdeen agree deal for goalkeeper Suman
Goalkeeper Nick Suman is to join Aberdeen as free agent in June when his contract with Cove Rangers 25-year-old Australian has spent two seasons at Balmoral, making 59 appearances for the League One Ross Doohan and Tom Ritchie moving on, number one choice Dimitar Mitov had been the only goalkeeper remaining in the Dons squad."He is a goalkeeper with a commanding presence, a strong record for clean sheets and he has demonstrated excellent qualities during his time in Scottish football," said Aberdeen manager Jimmy Thelin."Nick had interest from other clubs, but we strongly believe this will be the right environment for him to take the next step in his career. He will be a valuable addition to our squad and will provide healthy competition for the number one spot."
BBC News
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
'Pandemonium & outpouring of emotions as Dons make history'
Jimmy Thelin and his players had one game to become heroes and write themselves into Aberdeen typical fashion of this season, it wasn't easy. We needed 120 minutes, four perfect penalties and two terrific Dimitar Mitov saves to end a 35-year wait for Scottish Cup all the nerve-shredding tension was worth it when Graeme Shinnie lifted that famous no 'Plan B' has been a criticism levelled at Thelin this season. Yet in the biggest game of our season he switched to a back five and brought in Jack Milne, who was absolutely outstanding. As was every man in stifled Celtic, nullified their wide men, and the gameplan took an own goal to give Celtic the lead but, similar to the stunning start of the season, Thelin's substutitions paid Gueye and Shayden Morris brought pace and physicality Celtic couldn't deal with. Just three minutes and three seconds separated Morris' introduction off the bench and his cross deflecting into the net to send 20,000 of us inside Hampden into delirium. Suddenly there was a real belief it could be our enduring an arduous extra 30 minutes which felt a lot longer, penalties arrived and just like 2014 the Dons ended their trophy drought with success from the in the stands, outpouring of emotions, the first Scottish cup victory for a generation. This squad has its place in history. Me and many others have a memory and moment to Jimmy and the players, thank you for the perfect, unforgettable end to this season's rollercoaster group-stage football now awaits, and a summer transfer window to build a squad to compete. It's exciting times but for now another rewatch of the cup final highlights are in Schreuder can be found at Red Tinted Glasses, external
Scotsman
7 days ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
Hibs in line for hat-trick of Euro parachutes despite Dons Cup win
Celtic failure at Hampden sees Dons straight into Conference League - so what happens to Easter Road rivals? Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... From the moment when Dimitar Mitov threw himself across goal to save Alistair Johnston's effort in Saturday's Scottish Cup final penalty shoot-out at Hampden, everyone at Hibs knew that life just became that bit harder for all at Easter Road. In a turn of events that doesn't exactly feel new to long-suffering supporters, their team will now have to do things the hard way. That doesn't apply only to the suddenly daunting European path laid before them. In every aspect of the business, from recruitment to finance, losing the immediate guarantee of European football until January – a prize worth up to £7 million, according to some estimates - will have an impact. Yet there is still hope. Let's break it down. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Lucrative jackpot still up for grabs – how many games are Hibs guaranteed? UEFA's access list for their club competitions is based on the idea that winning the Scottish Cup is a greater achievement, one more worthy of recognition, than finishing third in the Scottish Premiership. Which means that Celtic's failure to defeat Aberdeen saw the Dons claim their rightful place in European football, while Hibs were bumped down the pecking order. Instead of heading into the Europa League play-offs, with a spot in the Europa Conference League proper providing a soft landing in the event of failure, Hibs now kick off their continental campaign almost a whole month earlier, in the second qualifying round of the Europa League. They'll need to get through a couple of two-legged ties, then, in order to secure that Conference League windfall. But … ah yes, it's not all horrible news. Hibs COULD be seeded in at least one of their Europa League ties. And they have a Conference League fallback at every stage. Not one but THREE parachutes to break their fall, so to speak. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad So, even if they lose in the Europa League second qualifying round, they'll drop into the third qualifying round of the Conference League. Failing in the Europa League third qualifying round would see Hibs go into the Conference League play-offs. And, of course, should they progress to – but lose in - the Europa League play-offs, they'll go straight into the Europa Conference League. The full league competition. The absolute worst-case scenario still involves four European games. And there IS still a route to guaranteed league stage European football. It's just much trickier now. Top transfer targets and Black Knight recruits still on radar When it comes to signing or even retaining players, Hibs still have a lot going for them. But losing that European guarantee might just make a difference, for players with any number of options. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad If playing regularly in a UEFA competition is a must for you, as a player, signing for Hibs would now represent a gamble. Unless, of course, business is delayed until – they hope – David Gray's men batter their way into the league stages. That wouldn't be ideal for Gray, who wants to get any business done early as he looks to build on a remarkable finish to his first season as a manager. But for the right player? Maybe a defensive midfielder under contract to a Premier League club but weighing up his options? That might be worth the wait … The ambition this summer is still to tap into the Black Knight group's expertise and recruitment ability. Billionaire Bournemouth owner Bill Foley can hardly complain about the club, in which he holds a minority stake, ONLY finishing third. But a European guarantee, the certainty of knowing that players will get the chance to develop in UEFA competition as well as the Scottish top flight, would have sweetened any internal movement of talent. And kick-started the whole arrangement. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Easter Road board could do with the extra income of league stage football In the last available set of accounts, Hibs posted losses of £7.2 million. All covered by the Gordon family, who were willing to bear the cost of making repeated managerial changes – incurring not merely pay-off costs every time they made a sacking, but an increased wage bill as each new gaffer was backed in the transfer market. Sporting director Malky Mackay has demonstrated some clever footwork to alleviate some of the strain on that wage bill, shifting players out – either on loan or permanently – to bring down overheads. He'll need to be on his toes again this summer, given the contract status of some players unlikely to ever feature in the first team. Hibs chairman Ian Gordon has made it clear that, as the majority shareholders, his family will continue to cover losses. And he'll be hoping, of course, that Gray's men power their way through those European qualifiers to deliver almost exactly the amount of revenue needed to balance the books. Doing things the hard way it is, then. The Hibs way. Hardly a shocking twist of fate, is it?
Scotsman
7 days ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
Scottish football's extraordinary final was good for the game - and that's not being anti-Celtic
Watching Scottish Cup final drama will always remain an unforgettable experience Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Football fans being essentially selfish, and rightly so, it wasn't quite as straightforward as knowing everyone bar Celtic fans welcomed what unfolded in Saturday's Scottish Cup final. Hibs fans may well have felt some anguish, despite the uplifting way their season ended. The Dundee United media team, meanwhile, made a mental note to refrain from posting anything that could potentially come back to haunt them. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Both teams had their European plans negatively affected by the surprise outcome. It was possible to feel sympathy for whoever holds the key to the Tannadice club's X account, given few felt the need to point out that it was jumping the gun a bit when he or she posted, following the 2-1 win over Aberdeen, that United were now set fair for the Europa League. Reader: they weren't. Aberdeen captain Graeme Shinnie shows off the Scottish Cup to the Aberdeen fans. | SNS Group Downgraded to the Conference League qualifiers due to Aberdeen's unlikely Scottish Cup win, it's nevertheless hard to imagine United fans being overly exercised by their north-east rivals' success. What a season United enjoyed in any case. The same applies to Hibs fans, though they were more materially affected when the guarantee of group stage European football was plucked from their grasp as Dimitar Mitov leapt to his right to block Alistair Johnston's penalty. The stop heard all around the world? Maybe not quite, but what a shot in the arm for Scottish football. We can surely say that without being accused of being anti-Celtic or too pro-Aberdeen. No one should feel the need to apologise for enjoying an unexpected twist and sharing in the delight of over 20,000 Aberdeen supporters in the ground and many multiples more watching elsewhere. To say they simply 'enjoyed it' would be seriously downplaying the surge in dopamine levels. Much was made earlier this month of the 40th anniversary of the last time Aberdeen won the Scottish title, which also meant it was 40 years since anyone outside of Rangers and Celtic had won it. While it was an anniversary worth noting, it was also a grim one. Had Celtic lifted the Scottish Cup on Saturday, it would have marked another milestone: the equal longest run in which a non-Old Firm club had failed to land a domestic trophy since between 1998 and 2004. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It can still get dull Of course, Celtic have been doing most of the 'heavy lifting' in that regard – indeed, they have won 21 out of the last 27 trophies. They have lost just five out of their last 29 cup finals. It's less an Old Firm thing, more a Celtic thing. But whether a case of two teams dominating or just one, it can still get a bit….dull. After seventy odd minutes on Saturday, the Scottish Cup final looked set to go the way of two other national cup finals played on the same day. In France, Paris Saint-Germain swept Reims aside. In Germany, the romance was in third tier Arminia Bielefeld simply getting to that stage; the lower league side lost 4-2 to Stuttgart having trailed 3-0 at half-time. It was expected to be a very similar story at Hampden. At around 2.30pm, Aberdeen fans had one last long gulp of whatever they were drinking to fortify them before taking one long deep breath: it was time to head to the stadium. There was little cup final tingle to speak of. Aberdeen's player rush away to celebrate the victory. | SNS Group Little that occurred in the opening 45 minutes had caused anyone to reconsider pre-match predictions. Although they could probably have done with another goal, Celtic had this sewn up. History awaited Brendan Rodgers, who was bidding to be the first Parkhead manager to win three trebles. It made what unfolded more extraordinary. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Inch by inch, minute by minute, almost imperceptibly, there was a change in direction. Momentum began to shift. Not in a blink of an eye. It was more of a slow, creeping realisation that actually, it's possible we might have a shock on our hands here. It wasn't just one moment. Rather, it was several small moments, most of them not deemed significant enough to be included in a match correspondent's copy but which, looking back, saw the match slowly tilt away from Celtic and towards Aberdeen. As I scrawled in a notepad, a Leighton Clarkson free kick after 50 minutes 'at least gave Kasper Schmeichel something to do'. Arne Engels then hit the post after 64 mins. A Celtic second was surely imminent, or was it? Then came the triple substitution that some Celtic fans contend made them fatally weaker. Case of triple substitutions Nicolas Kuhn, Adam Idah and Engels departed to be replaced by James Forrest, Yang Hyun-Jun and Luke McCowan. Two minutes later Liam Scales almost deflected an Alexander Jensen cross into his own net. And then, with 15 minutes left, Aberdeen made a triple substitution of their own. It was a triple substitution with a difference. Three players came on and four initially went off, something I referenced with !!! in my pad. Ante Palaversa was re-directed back on, which is just as well seeing as he slotted home Aberdeen's fourth and last kick in the shootout. Jimmy Thelin later explained the mix-up as a few of us stood with him in the bowels of Hampden. It was, the Aberdeen manager suggested, due to his assistant Chrisster Persson's bad handwriting: 'It was a confusing moment,' he admitted. 'But it was good that we survived that one.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He could say that again. Imagine had Aberdeen slumped to defeat having barely tested Schmeichel all afternoon. What is now an amusing side-issue would have been identified as a farce and treated as further evidence of the Swede not being up to the job. Aberdeen chairman Dave Cormack. | SNS Group In actual fact, the delay as referee Don Robertson sought to ensure it was still 11 v 11 helped to further take the sting out of the game. Aberdeen equalised minutes later thanks to a very fortunate own goal after a rare foray upfield.
Press and Journal
7 days ago
- Sport
- Press and Journal
Aberdeen fan view: The Dons' humble hero speaks the truth after an unforgettable afternoon
'I'm not the hero. Everybody involved here is a hero.' The first recorded words of the man who completed Aberdeen's staggering Scottish Cup triumph were characteristically humble. Truer ones, though, won't often have been spoken. Dimitar Mitov's impeccably rehearsed goalkeeping – and as inch-perfect a set of shootout penalties as have ever been taken – will be the images replayed throughout eternity. But the towering stopper is correct to establish that they may never have taken place at all without an unstinting, unflinching effort from everyone responsible for carrying out the Dons' gameday plan. On the field, there were those who gave more than they had for longer than they could. Titanic two-hour shifts from Graeme Shinnie, Alexander Jensen, Mats Knoester and, after his brief, unscheduled visit to the bench, Ante Palaversa. Others who went as deep as their legs could withstand, before making way for new legends arriving midway to reinforce the campaign. In the dugout, an extraordinary turn to the pragmatic by the ice-cold Jimmy Thelin and a hard-working staff who staged a revolution in less than a week. In the background, those who pressed the case for so many Dandies to be able to experience the moment; and those fans themselves for creating a seething, surging wall of scarlet noise both in the stadium and in the city to see their winners home. Above it all, those who implemented and funded the project. And even those who designed and selected the team's kit, its chessboard pattern, mirroring the iconic strip of 1990, foreshadowing both the victorious end to the season and the nationality of the man who smashed in its final, decisive goal. Though nobody else in the land could see, it was hidden in plain sight. Aberdeen's fabulous fate, literally woven into the very fabric of the club. What a game. What a day. What a club.
