Manager Jimmy Thelin insists Bojan Miovski is ready to fight for the cause at Aberdeen after helping his side record a 2-1 win in their Premiership opener at St Johnstone.
The North Macedonian international, who was the subject of a £3million bid from Espanyol last week, made his first start of the season at McDiarmid Park.
Thelin was delighted with the attitude shown by his star striker – the subject of intense speculation all summer.
The Dons boss said: “He has been sharp in training and really focused and there is a lot of positive energy in the pitch and the locker room.
“He showed he is here and wants to do well at Aberdeen. He has been fighting in training, giving it 100%, and you can see he is a really good player.
“Right now he is an Aberdeen player and we focus on that in training day by day.
“He has been ready all the time, but we have tried to prepare the whole team.
“Ester Sokler and Peter Ambrose have done well, but I know what Bojan can do.”
Fighting spirit pleases Dons boss
Goals in either half from Nicky Devlin and Jamie McGrath put the Dons 2-0 up at McDiarmid Park, but Gavin Molloy’s late own-goal set-up a frantic finale.
However, the Dons repelled the Saints attack to secure all three points from their league opener in Perth.
Thelin was delighted by the fighting spirit shown by his side to dig deep and win the game.
He said: “It was a tough game. We came out well in the first half and had a good structure in the team. We were strong in midfield and had some good combinations.
“St Johnstone finished the first half stronger, but how we defended and our transitions, with blocking shots and crosses was really good.
“It was not easy against the way St Johnstone play and you have to be sharp all the time, but that’s what I saw from my team.
“St Johnstone have their identity and you have to respect that and do your work before the game.
“When you get tired it is not easy, but all the players competed and found a way to win.”
Thelin enjoyed atmosphere on league debut
Thelin and his players celebrated their winning start at full-time and the Dons boss was delighted with the atmosphere generated by the Aberdeen support.
The Aberdeen manager revelled in his first experience of Premiership football, but despite leading his side to five wins in a row, he is not getting carried away.
He said: “I liked seeing so many supporters from Aberdeen and the atmosphere was really good. It was loud, intense and how we celebrated after the game was really nice.
“We are going to need the fans in the tough times. I like how they support us and believe in us and we will need them step by step all the way. We need everyone.
“It is only one league win and we have to go to the next game in the league.”
Saints boss fears defender’s season is over
While there was joy for the Aberdeen manager, his St Johnstone counterpart Craig Levein fears defender Sam McLelland’s season could be over after the defender suffered a suspected Achilles injury.
Levein said: “Sam has ruptured his Achilles by the looks of things. He’s not had much luck at all.
“He could be out for a lengthy period of time, so I feel for him. I know myself what it’s like with injuries, it can be quite a lonely place.
“The game is great until something like this happens.
“I brought Lewis Neilson in as another centre-back, but I didn’t expect to lose one, so we’ll have to see what we do now.”
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