Things aren’t going to plan for Aberdeen but Jimmy Thelin has insisted he has no regrets over his decision to swap Elfsborg for Pittodrie.
The Dons are now 14 games without a win in the Premiership and the Swede is facing the biggest challenge of his managerial career. Thelin left title-chasing Elfsborg who were in the Europa League group stages to kick-off his Reds’ revolution. It started off well with a long unbeaten run of 12 games but since then they haven’t won in the league and their only victory in that time came at Elgin City in the last round.
Thelin still believes he was right to swap Sweden for Scotland. Thelin, when asked if he had any regrets, answered: “No. When we started there, we made a lot of changes. We created a totally new identity for the team. The strategy, how we wanted to build the team.
“It was quite up and down in the beginning because you make changes. When you make changes, it can be unstable, but you have to be brave in these moments. Keep doing the things.
“Usually, when you’re here, sometimes when you make changes, it can go down a little bit, but hopefully on a higher level when you’re out on the other side. But if you don’t do anything, it’s going to be the same.
“So you have to sometimes identify some parts, be brave to stick to this and do them and even if the results go up and down. But still be aware of the short term because now it’s too many games (without a win)”
Thelin accused some of his players of hiding last week at Hibs. The manager has since stated it is very much a team effort and he and the players are in the current predicament together.
The Aberdeen manager stated: “Again, it’s not me or the players. It’s us. We’re in the same brand. We went out and there was no energy, not the strongest we can be in a game for every challenge.
“I said it, but also the players know it. You understand? So it’s not like I think in this and they think in that.
“It was not to blame someone, it was to say we can’t keep doing this. Again, when you sign this paper for this club you have to take responsibility.
“You can’t do anything every moment. It’s not like you can go down in some parts. Some players are outside the squad also and get the chance to start again. Some players when they get this opportunity have to take it.”
Thelin has dreams of cup success and finishing third in the league. “We look at the positive things now,” he stated. “Where we are and what we can catch, Instead of looking backwards.
“We focus on what we actually still have a chance to achieve this season. The cup and keep challenging for a good spot on the table. To get us to Europe for the summer.
“You can’t promise things in football but you can promise 100% performance and that’s what we have to focus on right now.”
Aberdeen’s early season form has unravelled but Thelin wants to make sure his squad finish on a high. “Hopefully that can help us to get the results and then we’re not going to have any regrets,” he claimed.
“But if you feel like you’re going 90% of 100 then the regrets will come. So you can’t promise the results.
“But you can promise that when they put on the shirt, go out on the pitch and the fans are there. That they feel like it’s 100% effort. That it’s united, that 100% effort. That we give the fans.
“That gives us an opportunity to get good results and that’s why we have to go back to the basics because we see the way we attack now is going slower than in the beginning.
“That’s why I think we have to stop doing some parts and keep doing the good things in our game.”