Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin hails two-goal hero Pape Gueye for grabbing his chance to impress

Dons manager also discusses Scotland international striker Kevin Nisbet who made his debut off the bench following loan move.

Aberdeen's Pape Gueye celebrates his 2nd goal against Kilmarnock. Image: Shutterstock
Aberdeen's Pape Gueye celebrates his 2nd goal against Kilmarnock. Image: Shutterstock

Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin has underlined the importance of two goal hero Pape Gueye’s aerial threat.

Gueye netted two clinical headers in a 2-0 win against Kilmarnock that extended the Dons’ winning start to the season to eight games in all competitions.

A £500,000 signing in August 2023, Gueye was frozen out of the first team last term.

He was sent on loan at Norwegian side Kristiansund BK for the second half of last season.

When he arrived as Aberdeen’s new manager, Thelin said every player would be given a clean slate.

Gueye has grabbed that opportunity by netting three goals in the last two Premiership matches.

Aberdeen’s Pape Gueye celebrates his 2nd goal against Kilmarnock. Image: Shutterstock

Thelin said: “Pape is really good in the air and good in both attack and defence, both directions.

“He also defends really well at set-plays.

“For second balls you have to be there and read the timing and Pape is very good with that.”

From frozen out to goal hero

Gueye had just one start for the Dons last season before being sent on loan to Norway.

The attacker seems to be thriving under Thelin’s guidance after a tough debut season at Pittodrie.

Thelin said: “I hadn’t seen much of Pape before.

“Everyone started from zero and everyone is trying to give everything and grow.

“Players are human beings and you never know how opportunities arrive.

“I am happy with Pape.

“He trains, grows, is competitive and a good teammate who fights for the team.

“I’m really happy with how everyone is contributing to the team.”

Aberdeen’s Pape Habib Gueye at full time after the 2-0 win against Kilmarnock. Image: SNS

What can Kevin Nisbet bring to Dons?

Striker Nisbet came off the bench for his Aberdeen debut just 24 hours after securing a season-long loan move from Millwall.

Nisbet, a £2m signing by Millwall from Hibs last summer, was introduced to a standing ovation in the 79th minute.

Kevin Nisbet of Aberdeen makes his debut. Image: Shutterstock

On Nisbet, Thelin said: “We have a good squad and have brought real depth and healthy competition.

“We have a good dressing room and keep that competition in the training sessions as well.

“They challenge each other for the starting XI in the squad and are pushing each other.”

Kevin Nisbet made his Aberdeen debut against Kilmarnock. Image: Shutterstock

‘I liked the team spirit, how we compete and how we fight’

Croatian midfielder Ante Palaversa also made his Aberdeen debut as a substitute in the final minutes.

Palaversa, 24, arrived on a one-year deal with an option for a further two years from French club ES Troyes for an undisclosed fee.

Thelin said: “I’m happy with the performance. It was stable and we had a good first half.

“We attacked in different ways but also stayed close to each other and helped each other when Kilmarnock attacked.

“We tried to win the second balls and deny them transitions.

“Kilmarnock also had a period where they were really good so it is never easy.

“But I liked the team spirit, how we compete together and fight with each other.

“And there is the extra touch of Pittodrie with the fans who gave us energy.

“I’m happy with how the atmosphere is growing and everyone understands they have a part to play as Aberdeen grow.”

Ante Palaversa of Aberdeen is substituted on to make his debut. Image: Shutterstock

Kilmarnock’s red card decision

Kilmarnock were reduced to 10 men in the 54th minute when captain Brad Lyons was red carded for a foul on Ester Sokler.

Referee Matthew MacDermid initially awarded a yellow card but upgraded it to a straight red following a VAR review.

Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes was left frustrated by the dismissal.

Manager Jimmy Thelin and the Aberdeen players at full time during the William Hill Scottish Premiership match against Kilmarnock. Image: Shutterstock

Thelin said: “I know referees have a really difficult job so I never talk about a decision after a game.

“I trust them as they do their job and I focus on my job.”

Conversation