Jonny Hayes keen to emulate Aberdeen FC team he's always been envious of by completing Hacken mission

Jonny Hayes was always envious of the Aberdeen squad of 2007.

The 36-year-old Irishman will get the chance to follow in their footsteps and is determined it will be in the continent’s second-tier competition once again. It is 16 years since Darren Mackie headed home in a 1-1 draw with Dnipro that sent Jimmy Calderwood’s Dons into the UEFA Cup group stage. It saw them face Atletico Madrid, Panathinaikos, Copenhagen and Lokomotiv Moscow before mighty Bayern Munich in the knockout stages.

Since then, Aberdeen teams have tried and failed to repeat the feat. Hayes was involved when Derek McInnes’ side qualified for Europe eight years in a row and then again under Stephen Glass, only to fail to get beyond the qualifiers. Now Barry Robson’s crop know if they beat BK Hacken at Pittodrie tonight, they will be in the Europa League groups. If they don’t, the same stage of the Conference League looms. Hayes said: “We’ve had two, three or four rounds of qualifying before, had tough draws and fallen that little bit short. I’ve always been envious a little of the 2007-08 squad that played Dnipro. I wish we had one play-off game, regardless of the opposition, to prepare for.

“I’m sure our chances of having group stage football would have been increased. This season we’ve got our wish. We’ve got the parachute of the Conference League but by no means are we thinking about that. We want to win the game and the glory that comes with playing Europa League football.”

Robson wants his side to enjoy the occasion but Hayes is adamant they are going all out for the Europa League. They aren’t interested in the consolation should they fail to build on last week’s 2-2 draw in Sweden. He added: “Golfers want to win the prizes on offer and for us it’s