Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes says his side’s dismantling of Aberdeen proved they can produce the goods in both boxes.
The Rugby Park men were on top from first whistle to last as goals from Kyle Vassell, David Watson, Innes Cameron and Bruce Anderson saw them give the perfect late Christmas present to their fans with a 4-0 victory.
The hosts looked dangerous with every attack and were assured and composed defensively. Both of those things have been lacking in consistency in what as, to this point, been a stop-start campaign.
But the victory means it’s now four games unbeaten while they’ve conceded just twice in that stretch.
A delighted McInnes said: “We’ve been more than decent between both boxes in recent weeks, but it’s been pointed towards us that we’ve not scored enough goals or kept enough clean sheets, which is valid.
“There have been signs recently that we’ve been more stingy with our work. I’m delighted with the level of our performance and our clean sheet.”
He added: “I did say about this period coming up that there were no excuses left, we just had to get on with the job.
“We’ve had two away points, and they’re only good if you win your home games.
“We felt Motherwell was close to a winning performance and we came into this game feeling pretty good about ourselves. We’ve been looking for this. It’s Boxing Day.
“I had an idea of how I thought the game would play out. Did I think we would score four goals? Probably not but it’s nice to see a lot of things pay off.”
Three strikers were on the scoresheet in the rout, while young Bobby Wales turned in a terrific display that earned the gaffer’s praise despite being the odd man out.
McInnes said: “Vassell led the line brilliantly. He was in the middle of their goal for the first. We’ve spoken about more one-touch finishes, and while he didn’t do that, he managed to get it over the line.
“Young Bobby will remember playing alongside him. He played very well too. Bobby’s movement, kind of floating around that left side, drifting into good areas. For someone so young, he’s very intelligent.
“For the subs to get two goals, Innes and wee Bruce, it was almost a perfect day for us as it’s always important for your strikers to get goals.
“Although Bobby never got his goal today, the other three did. Bobby had a very strong game as well.”
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