It is not hard to see why Aberdeen are unhappy at VAR again following Rangers’ remarkable let-off on Sunday.
Duk’s determination counted against him as the Dons went down 1-0 in Glasgow.
The Cape Verde international was involved in the big talking point as the Dons’ seven-match winning run was ended by the Light Blues.
Connor Goldson was all over the Aberdeen attacker, and with Duk getting the better of him, he panicked and wrestled Duk to the ground.
Duk sprang back to his feet as he had only one thought in mind – which was to get a shot away, and he won his side a corner.
The Dons waited for VAR to intervene, but nothing happened. John Beaton’s decision to award a corner stood.
I’ve watched the incident a few times and it is clear Goldson feared the worst as his initial reaction was to look to the referee.
Penalty shout for Aberdeen v Rangers today.
Barry Robson was correct to ask for VAR.
The contact continues in to the box from the Rangers player on the Aberdeen player.Rangers last conceded a penalty in the league a record 52 games ago. https://t.co/ETDbnZxTt4 pic.twitter.com/apkC2WrxQS
— Lint (@Zeshankenzo) May 7, 2023
Aberdeen assistant manager Steve Agnew can also be seen appealing from the dugout.
Fellow striker Bojan Miovski was caught on camera talking to Duk after the incident, no doubt telling him to stay down next time and force the officials to make a decision.
If anything. Duk was guilty of being too honest.
For me, the foul starts outside the box, but it is clear it carries on into the penalty area. On that basis, it should be reviewed.
If the referee’s decision to award a corner is not a clear and obvious error then I’m struggling to know what is.
Surely a second look should have happened and I can understand Dons boss Barry Robson’s frustration at nothing being done.
At the very least. it should have been reviewed.
Ignoring it altogether beggars belief and Barry was justified in asking afterwards where was VAR? Was it in the building?
Dons can take positives from Ibrox showing
The incident apart, there was little between the sides and Aberdeen should take comfort from that.
They’ve gone to Ibrox, a ground where they were torn to shreds earlier in the season, and pushed Rangers all the way.
On another day, Duk could have had a couple and in the end they lost out to a terrific strike from Todd Cantwell.
Barry said he could accept a defeat if his players give him everything. That’s exactly how I would assess Aberdeen’s performance in Glasgow.
The Dons gave as good as they got, created some great chances, and were unfortunate to come away with nothing.
Five ahead, four to go for the Dons
There’s a lot to be hopeful about heading into the remaining matches.
With Celtic winning the title in a 2-0 win at Hearts. the gap between the Dons and the Jambos remains at five points and there are only four games left.
Hibernian are next up at Pittodrie on Saturday, which will double as the Gothenburg 40th anniversary celebrations, so I expect the place to be packed out.
When the fixtures were announced it was clear the Dons would have to do it the hard way to hold off Hearts after being handed trips to Ibrox, Tynecastle and Celtic Park.
I’m confident victories from the two home matches against Hibs and St Mirren will be enough for Aberdeen to finish third, but it is easy saying it – it’s up to Barry and his players to make it happen.
Could the great escape be on at Ross County?
One weekend was all it took to give Ross County fresh hope of a great escape.
The 6-1 defeat at Hearts two weeks ago was compounded by wins for the Staggies’ rivals Kilmarnock and Dundee United.
Victory on Saturday against Livingston was a must after that and County did their part with an excellent 2-0 win.
A good day’s work became a great one when news filtered through both United and Killie had lost their respective matches.
It wasn’t pretty and the nerves jangled before the opening goal, but the triple substitution around the hour mark was the big call for me.
County looked comfortable at 1-0, but Malky Mackay clearly wanted to change something either for tactical reasons or to inject some freshness.
Whatever his reasoning it paid off, as Alex Samuel scored the second goal.
Both Samuel, who has been out for almost a year with a cruciate injury, and Josh Stones, made a major impact off the bench.
I did break out in a cold sweat when I saw Samuel is from Aberystwyth, though.
It instantly took me back to my days as a young Chelsea player.
We used to spend pre-season running up and down the sand dunes there and it was horrific. The worst week of the season by a mile.
As for County, the scene is now set for an absolute cracker at Tannadice on Saturday against Dundee United.
A win for the Staggies takes them off the bottom of the Premiership with three games remaining.
The stakes are huge.
Keeping Caley Jags players ticking over is Doddsy’s biggest challenge
My heart goes out to Caley Thistle after they came up just short in a remarkable bid to make the play-offs.
With eight games remaining, I predicted Billy Dodds’ side would need to win at least six of their matches to have a chance.
In the end six wins and a draw was not enough as the one defeat on Friday at home to Ayr United meant Inverness missed out.
It was harsh on the Caley Jags players, but at the final hurdle they didn’t reach the levels they had produced in the run-in.
As sore as it was, nobody could begrudge Ayr their win. They were the better team on the night and deserved it.
It will still be raw at Caledonian Stadium for everyone involved, but I’m sure Billy and his coaching staff are busy trying to put a plan together to keep the players ready for the Scottish Cup final on June 3.
A month of no football is going to be a huge challenge for Caley Thistle.
We’re at a time of season where arranging friendlies is not easy as other clubs are winding down or heading for the beach.
If there is one team you need to be match sharp to face it is Celtic. Caley Thistle know they will have to run, they won’t see a lot of the ball and their opponents are the best team in the country.
Being as best prepared as they can is of paramount importance.
Conversation