Barry Robson challenges Aberdeen stars to 'do it all again' as repeat of last season's surge to third required

Barry Robson helped Aberdeen hit the heights last year and now he has challenged his team to do it all again in 2024.

The young manager stepped in last season as the Dons’ season was spiralling out of control and led them from the bottom six to a money-spinning third-placed Premiership finish. That came with the added extra of bringing European group stage football to Pittodrie for the first time in 16 years.

Robson took Aberdeen to the Viaplay Cup final where they disappointingly lost to Rangers last month. It hasn’t been a bad return for a manager who will mark a year in the job at the end of this month. The Dons boss knows football never stands still and the pressure is on him and his team to pick up their league form in the second half of the season and to get back fighting for those European places and the Scottish Cup.

Robson admitted: “It was great that we finished third as well in the league, but it wasn’t so great to lose the cup final. That was frustrating for us. Our league form needs to be better, we all know that. In terms of the calendar year I feel it has been alright. It is where we want to be. We want to be in cup finals, to finish third in the league and to get to the group stages of European football. Now we have to try and do well in the second half of the season so we can try and do all that again.”

The Dons bowed out of the Europa Conference League at the group stages. They lost just two games and picked up points against all their rivals Eintracht Frankfurt, PAOK and HJK.

The highlight of the European run was the final night Pittodrie win over Eintracht Frankfurt. Robson admitted he would have gladly swapped that to win the Viaplay Cup.

The Aberdeen manager admitted: “Frankfurt, we were so good in