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Viking boss Bjarne Berntsen believes Aberdeen would be title contenders in Norway

Viking FK manager Bjarne Berntsen
Viking FK manager Bjarne Berntsen

Bjarne Berntsen believes Aberdeen would be title contenders if they played in the Norwegian league but the Viking FK boss remains convinced his side can upset the Dons in the Europa League tonight.

Berntsen has been studying Derek McInnes’ side since the draw was made and he has been impressed by the strength of the Dons side.

However, he is confident he has players who can cause Aberdeen problems when the two sides meet for the right to face Sporting Club de Portugal in next week’s third round.

The Viking manager said: “If Aberdeen played in the Norwegian league they would be challenging for the title, I am sure of that.

“They would be up there near the top of the table. I have watched their games this season and you can see they are one of the top four teams in Scotland.

“So I think this Aberdeen team are very good – although we will focus on the things we are good at. If we are solid in defence then we can exploit the counter attack because our front players are faster than their defenders.

“That is what we have to look to do, hopefully that is what will win the game for us. Aberdeen are stronger and more physical than us, but I think my players are faster.

“We will see this week how it works out.”

Lewis Ferguson and Ross McCrorie have caught the eye of the Viking boss Bjarne Berntsen

Berntsen has been pinpointed the Dons two central midfielders and Scotland central defender Scott McKenna as key players ahead of tonight’s game.

He said: “Although they have won some of their games by just one goal, it’s clear they are better than most of the opposition. They like to play football, they have technical players and they play short passes when they are in possession.

“They are a very physical team too when they need to be, they are very strong and in the middle of the pitch they have two very good young players.

“Lewis Ferguson and Ross McCrorie have impressed me a lot, they have a lot of talent and are very promising. They are solid, hard-working, good on the ball and they get forward offensively.

“They are very good but that is not Aberdeen’s only strength, they have an international player in the middle of the defence. He is very strong and good defensively.”

Viking play on an artificial surface but Berntsen insists it will not favour his side tonight.

He said: “I don’t think the pitch is an advantage for us. There are also artificial pitches in Scotland and ours is only three years old, so it is high quality.

“All teams are used to playing on these pitches now, it’s nothing new for players. So there is no advantage, both teams will play on the same pitch.

“It will be an open game and the best team on the evening will win.”