It has been disappointing to watch former Aberdeen fans’ favourite Duk send his relationship with supporters up in flames in recent days.
On Friday, Aberdeen released a statement making clear the Cape Verde international attacker had missed new boss Jimmy Thelin’s pre-season “without permission”.
The Reds’ statement added the 24-year-old has refused to “engage directly” with Dons chiefs while AWOL, and is now subject to disciplinary proceedings.
As expected, Duk – real name Luis Lopes – was not in attendance as Aberdeen began their season in the Premier Sports Cup at Queen of the South on Saturday.Â
A representative for Duk, a £400,000 signing from Benfica B two summers ago, agent Carlos Oliveira, and the attacker himself – who still has a year left on his Pittodrie contract – have both been quoted in the media in recent weeks making clear their determination to split with the Dons this summer.
Oliveira was quoted first saying the forward will “have to leave”, and accused Aberdeen of turning down “excellent offers” for his client in summer 2023 – following an impressive 18-goal debut season for the Dons – and in the last January window.
Duk himself was then quoted, in a different interview, saying this summer is “the right time to embrace a new challenge”.
He said he wanted to be sold for a fee, rather than move for free at the end of his deal next summer, in order to “repay” Aberdeen and former club Benfica, who are thought to hold a whopping 50% sell-on clause.
Duk sends ‘I only care about my own ambitions’ message to Dons fans
Aberdeen’s statement confirming Duk’s continued unsanctioned absence from Cormack Park has gone down like a lead balloon with fans.
Some responded to the story saying the striker’s wages should be stopped.
Or if he returns, he should be made to train away from the first-team until his deal runs out next summer, and if he doesn’t, the Dons should lobby Uefa to impose a ban on Duk signing for other clubs in the future.
There are two sides two every story, of course, but if the club’s rendering of the situation is accurate, then it appears the Duk camp are trying to force his exit from Aberdeen.
If this is the case, then supporters’ disgust is warranted.
As Swedish boss Thelin tries to revitalise Aberdeen back to being, at minimum, European challengers in the Premiership in the coming campaign, following last term’s bottom-six finish, the message Duk looks to be sending is this:
I don’t care about the club’s aims – and the hopes of the Aberdeen supporters – I only care about my own career ambitions.
It is an attitude in football which will usually see even the most popular player become persona non grata to the fans who previously worshipped them.
Duk was Red Army favourite during superb first season
And Duk was extremely popular with Aberdeen fans.
Having been signed under former boss Jim Goodwin, it took Duk a little bit of time to get going with the Dons.
North Macedonia international Bojan Miovski, who also arrived in summer 2022, started faster at the club.
However, when Miovski’s goals dried up, Duk picked up the scoring mantle for Aberdeen – eventually helping drag the Dons into Europe during Barry Robson’s interim tenure in the second half of his maiden season, as well as being crowned Pittodrie player of the season.
At times in his first campaign Duk was unplayable, and terrorised opposition defences with not just the directness of his running, but the unpredictability of his play.
His talent and creativity brought some magical moments.
To quote a YouTube commenter, his March 2023 backheel finish in a 3-1 win over Dundee United at Tannadice was “absolutely ridiculous”.
Fantastic as it was, I preferred the flick-and-spinning-scissors-kick goal at Ross County in September 2022 (which came while Goodwin was still in charge).
By the end of Duk’s first season, Dons games were frequently punctuated by choruses of “DUUUUUKKKKKK” from adoring fans marking every touch of the ball, as he crossed the threshold from “cult hero” to out-and-out “hero”.
Last summer, it was expected a big-money offer would come in to cut short Duk’s Pittodrie stay.
It wound have been an exit those supporters, well aware Aberdeen’s “player-trading model” means they must speculate on young talent and sell for profit, would have understood.
But with a price-tag of £5 million being bandied around during the campaign, certainly among pundits, no move materialised.
The Duk of last season, as Aberdeen toiled in the Premiership, was a different player. He looked slower, and less able to leave defenders in his wake.
His seven goals in all competitions were no match for Miovski’s tally of 26.
Duk’s agent, Oliveira, in his recent comments, blamed the attacker being used in wide positions, rather than through the middle, for the downturn in his form last term.
Have Aberdeen had ‘excellent offers’ for want-away striker?
Despite Duk’s comparatively poor season in 2023/24, Aberdeen did knock back bids of around £1.75m from Spain’s Leganes and a Dutch top-flight club for the striker on January deadline day,
Dons sources categorised those offers as “low-ball” at the time.
Were these the “excellent offers” Duk’s representative was referring to – offers which would have seen Aberdeen, minus Benfica’s 50%, receive £875,000 for their reigning player of the year, who had scored 18 goals in the previous campaign and had a year-and-a-half left on his deal at the time?
As stated, Aberdeen fans understand the Dons’ model means they will sell their stars for the right price.
You only need to look at supporters’ attitude to Bologna-linked Miovski this summer. They know if an Italian Serie A side comes in and offers Reds chiefs £10m for their current main man, he will be gone.
But it is understandable why Duk wasn’t sold for a fee which would have seen the club net less than a 10th of this figure.
How the Duk situation plays out from here is uncertain, but the odds of him ever lining up under new Dons gaffer Thelin from this point look slender.
There are ways to leave a club.
What a shame if a player, who was the undisputed champion of the Red Army a year ago, ends his time at Aberdeen like this.
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