Aberdeen manager Jimmy Thelin has told his side they will learn the harsh lessons from their 5-1 mauling by Celtic.
The Dons were punished for failing to take their chances by a clinical Celtic, but with a huge derby game against Dundee United next up at Pittodrie on Sunday, Thelin is adamant his side will respond against the Tangerines.
The Dons boss said: “We have to learn and improve for an important game against Dundee United.
“In terms of affecting confidence – it’s not going to happen. We are clear that we want to achieve, and we will focus on that.
“We will still challenge for the third spot and Europe. It’s a really important game against Dundee United.
“But I am 100 percent sure we will be strong. We’ll take the learning points from this game and be ready.”
Thelin finds positives despite defeat
The Dons wasted two great chances in the first 10 minutes in Glasgow as Oday Dabbagh and Kevin Nisbet both failed to test Kasper Schmeichel in the Celtic goal.
They were duly punished by a ruthless Hoops side as goals from Daizen Maeda, Jota and Callum McGregor gave the champions a 3-0 lead.
Substitute Hyunjun Yang added a fourth before Dons substitute Shayden Morris netted for Aberdeen in the final minute.
However, the Hoops responded with a fifth goal in injury-time as Maeda grabbed his second of the game to secure a comprehensive victory for the home side.
Thelin said: “An overall result of 5-1 is too much in the end.
“But in terms of how we want to grow as a team, some parts of the first half were good.
“We created chances, but they were beating us in the small percentages in the duels and they scored three goals in not many more chances.
“They were really clinical – it’s difficult to go out in the second half at 3-0 and Celtic are really good at what they do.
“You have to take your chances in these moments.
“You have to open up when you are chasing and the balance of the game changes.
“The way the goals arrived was too soft. When you lose the ball in the wrong areas, they can punish you. We have to be stronger and take care of the ball better.
“In our journey as a team, we have to learn about these extra percentages in that quality. Some parts of the game were good – but it was 5-1 in the end.
“It’s difficult to talk about good things with this result. We have to grow and I believe we will do that.”
Delight for Celtic manager Rodgers
Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers was delighted to see his side bounce back from their 2-1 defeat at Hibernian at the weekend with a 5-1 win against the Dons.
The Hoops manager said: “The result and scoreline was very impressive. Our goals in the first half were very good, but I wasn’t too happy with our pressing, although our mentality was impressive.
“It’s a really pleasing scoreline against a team which has found some form again and have some really good players.
“One of the traits in this team is the resilience, and any moment this season when we’ve had a bump, the mentality is to come again and I felt we did that.”
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