2016–17 Aberdeen F.C. season explained

Club:	Aberdeen
Season:	2016–17
Manager:	Derek McInnes
Mgrtitle:	Manager
Chairman:	Stewart Milne
Chrtitle:	Chairman
Stdtitle:	Ground
Stadium:	Pittodrie Stadium
League:	Scottish Premiership
League Result:	2nd
Cup1:	Scottish League Cup
Cup1 Result:	Runners-up
Cup2:	Scottish Cup
Cup2 Result:	Runners-up
Cup3:	Europa League
Cup3 Result:	Third qualifying round
League Topscorer:	Adam Rooney (12)
Season Topscorer:	Adam Rooney (20)
Highest Attendance:	19,332 vs Rangers, Premiership, 9 April 2017
Lowest Attendance:	8,195 vs Kilmarnock, Premiership, 6 December 2016
Average Attendance:	12,640
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Prevseason:	2015–16
Nextseason:	2017–18

The 2016–17 season was Aberdeen's 104th season in the top flight of Scottish football and the fourth in the Scottish Premiership. Aberdeen also competed in the League Cup and the Scottish Cup.

Aberdeen also competed in qualifying for the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League.^[1]

Summary

August

Aberdeen were knocked out of the Europa League by Maribor in the Third qualifying round.^[2]

They were then boosted when top-scorer from last season Adam Rooney signed a new contract, keeping him at the club until 2020.^[3]

November

Aberdeen reached the League Cup Final but lost 3–0 to Celtic.^[4]

December

After the Cup final loss, McInnes became under pressure after a poor run of results in December which included an abandoned match at home against Motherwell.^[5]

However, the Dons ended 2016 with 3 wins out of their last 3 matches in the year, keeping the same starting line-up in all 3 matches, easing pressure on McInnes.^[6]

January

Graeme Shinnie boosted the Dons signing on an extra year to his contract.^[7]

February

On 6 February, Niall McGinn was awarded SPFL January Goal of the Month for his goal against Dundee.^[8]

After 3 bids were rejected in the January transfer window by Cardiff City, on 7 February Jonny Hayes signed a new contract extension to keep him at the club until 2019.^[9]

On 14 February, Andrew Considine signed a new contract to also keep him at the club until 2019.^[10]

March

On 9 March, English League One side Milton Keynes Dons announced that Peter Pawlett had signed a pre-contract deal to join the club at the end of the 2016–17 season.^[11]

On 29 March, Jonny Hayes earned his first start for Ireland in a 1-0 friendly defeat to Iceland.^[12]

On 30 March, Greg Tansey signed a pre-contract 3-year deal to join the club from Inverness Caledonian Thistle at the end of the 2016–17 season.^[13]

April

On 7 April, manager Derek McInnes won SPFL March Manager of the Month after reaching the Scottish Cup Semi-final and beating Dundee 7-0.^[14]

On 15 April, Aberdeen secured Europa League football for next season with a hard-fought win over St Johnstone in Perth.^[15]

On 22 April, Aberdeen reached the Scottish Cup final for the first time in 17 years with victory over holders Hibernian.^[16]

May

On 2 May, Jonny Hayes was shortlisted for player of the year in the PFA Scotland awards.^[17]

On 4 May, Derek McInnes was shortlisted for manager of the year in the PFA Scotland awards.^[18]

On 5 May, Joe Lewis, Shay Logan, Kenny McLean and Jonny Hayes all made the PFA Scotland's Premiership team of the year.^[19]

On 7 May, Aberdeen all but secured the Runners-up spot in the Premiership with a 2-1 win against Heart of Midlothian at Tynecastle Stadium.^[20]

On 12 May, Dean Campbell was introduced as a substitute against Celtic, becoming the club's youngest-ever player (a record previously held by Jack Grimmer).^[21]

On 17 May, Aberdeen defeated Rangers 2-1 at Ibrox Stadium, their first victory at that stadium since 1991.^[22] The result also mathematically confirmed Aberdeen's second place in the final league table.

On 21 May, teenager Scott Wright scored his first senior hat-trick to end the league season with a 6-0 win against Partick Thistle at Firhill.^[23]

On 24 May, Derek McInnes announced that Graeme Shinnie would captain the Dons in the Scottish Cup Final,^[24] after it was announced that Ryan Jack was leaving the club.^[25]

On 27 May, the Dons lost the Scottish Cup Final to Celtic, their sixth, in total, defeat to them this season against what was "The Invincibles".^{[26] [27]}

Results and fixtures

Scottish Premiership

See main article: 2016–17 Scottish Premiership.

UEFA Europa League

See main article: 2016–17 UEFA Europa League.

Aberdeen qualified for the first preliminary round of the UEFA Europa League by finishing second in the 2015–16 Scottish Premiership.

Qualifying phase

See main article: 2016–17 UEFA Europa League qualifying phase and play-off round.

Scottish League Cup

See main article: 2016–17 Scottish League Cup.

Scottish Cup

See main article: 2016–17 Scottish Cup.

Squad statistics

Joe Lewis was the only player to have played every minute of this season.

Appearances

|-|colspan="10"|Players who left the club during the 2016–17 season|-|-|colspan="10"|Players who left the club on loan during the 2016–17 season|-|}

Goalscorers

width=60	Ranking	width=60	Nation	width=60	Number	width=150	Name	width=80	Scottish Premiership	width=80	Europa League	width=80	League Cup	width=80	Scottish Cup	width=80	Total
1		9	Adam Rooney	12	3	2	3	20
2		10	Niall McGinn	10	1	1	2	14
3		11	Jonny Hayes	9	1	0	1	11
4		8	Ryan Christie	6	0	0	1	7
5			4	Andrew Considine	6	0	0	0	6
		17	Jayden Stockley	5	1	0	0	6
7		7	Kenny McLean	4	0	1	0	5
8		2	Shay Logan	2	1	0	1	4
9			3	Graeme Shinnie	2	0	0	1	3
		5	Ash Taylor	3	0	0	0	3
		15	Anthony O'Connor	3	0	0	0	3
		16	Peter Pawlett	3	0	0	0	3
		26	Scott Wright	3	0	0	0	3
14		22	Ryan Jack	2	0	0	0	2
		23	James Maddison	2	0	0	0	2
16			8	Wes Burns	0	1	0	0	1
		39	Miles Storey	1	0	0	0	1
			Own Goal	1	0	1	1	3
TOTALS				74	8	5	10	97

Disciplinary record

Number	Nation	Position	Name	Premiership		Europa League		League Cup		Scottish Cup		Total
				width=60 style="background: #FFEE99"		width=60 style="background: #FF8888"		width=60 style="background: #FFEE99"		width=60 style="background: #FF8888"		width=60 style="background: #FFEE99"		width=60 style="background: #FF8888"		width=60 style="background: #FFEE99"		width=60 style="background: #FF8888"		width=60 style="background: #FFEE99"		width=60 style="background: #FF8888"
1		GK	Joe Lewis	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
2		DF	Shay Logan	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
3		DF	Graeme Shinnie	11	0	2	0	1	0	1	0	15	0
4		DF	Andrew Considine	7	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	8	0
5		DF	Ash Taylor	4	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	6	0
6		DF	Mark Reynolds	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	1
7		MF	Kenny McLean	3	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
8		MF	Wes Burns	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
8		MF	Willo Flood	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
9		FW	Adam Rooney	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
10		MF	Niall McGinn	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
11		MF	Jonny Hayes	6	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	7	0
15		DF	Anthony O'Connor	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
16		MF	Peter Pawlett	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
17		FW	Jayden Stockley	3	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	3	3
22		MF	Ryan Jack	3	1	1	0	1	0	1	0	6	1
23		MF	James Maddison	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	4	0
26		FW	Scott Wright	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
			TOTALS	58	4	13	1	5	0	3	0	79	5

Team statistics

League table

Transfers

See main article: List of Scottish football transfers summer 2016 and List of Scottish football transfers winter 2016–17.

Players in

Dates	Position	Nationality	Player	From	Fee
11 May 2016	FW		Jayden Stockley	Bournemouth	Free^[28]
15 June 2016	GK		Joe Lewis	Cardiff City	Free^[29]
15 June 2016	GK		Neil Alexander	Heart of Midlothian	Free
15 June 2016	DF		Callum Morris	Dundee United	Free
25 June 2016	DF		Anthony O'Connor	Burton Albion	Free^[30]
1 July 2016	FW		Miles Storey	Swindon Town	Free

Players out

Dates	Position	Nationality	Player	To	Fee
16 May 2016	GK		Scott Brown	Wycombe Wanderers	Free^[31] ^[32]
16 May 2016	MF		Barry Robson	Retired	N/A
18 June 2016	DF		Michael Rose	Ayr United	Free^[33]
29 June 2016	FW		David Goodwillie	Plymouth Argyle	Free^[34]
14 July 2016	MF		Willo Flood	Dundee United	Free^[35]
31 December 2016	DF		Callum Morris	Dunfermline Athletic	Free^[36]

Loans in

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Fee
14 July 2016	FW		Wes Burns	Bristol City	Loan^[37]
31 August 2016	MF		James Maddison	Norwich City	Loan^[38]
24 January 2017	MF		Ryan Christie	Celtic	Loan^[39]

Loans out

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Fee
20 June 2016	GK		Aaron Lennox	Raith Rovers	Loan^[40]
8 July 2016	GK		Danny Rogers	Falkirk	Loan^[41]
13 July 2016	MF		Cammy Smith	Dundee United	Loan^[42]
19 July 2016	FW		Lawrence Shankland	St Mirren	Loan^[43]
3 August 2016	DF		Daniel Harvie	Dumbarton	Loan^[44]
10 November 2016	FW		Joe Nuttall	Stranraer	Loan^[45]
11 November 2016	DF		Scott McKenna	Ayr United	Loan^[46]
16 December 2016	FW		Connor McLennan	Brechin City	One-month Loan^[47]
3 January 2017	MF		Craig Storie	St Mirren	Loan^[48]
11 January 2017	FW			Greenock Morton	Loan^[49]
26 January 2017	MF			St Mirren	Loan^[50]
31 March 2017	FW			Dumbarton	Loan^[51]

See also

• List of Aberdeen F.C. seasons

Notes and References

1. Web site: Aberdeen's Kenny McLean happy to cut break for Scotland games. 11 May 2016. BBC.
2. Web site: NK Maribor 1-0 Aberdeen (agg 2-1). 4 August 2016. BBC.
3. Web site: Adam Rooney signs new contract at Aberdeen until 2020. 5 August 2016. Sky Sports.
4. Web site: Scottish League Cup final: Aberdeen 0-3 Celtic. 27 November 2016. BBC.
5. Web site: Aberdeen: Derek McInnes under pressure to finish second - Willie Miller. 18 December 2016. BBC.
6. Web site: Heart of Midlothian 0-1 Aberdeen. 30 December 2016. BBC.
7. Web site: Graeme Shinnie signs Aberdeen contract until 2019. 23 January 2017. BBC Sport.
8. Web site: Aberdeen’s Niall McGinn wins SPFL January Goal of the Month award. 6 February 2017. eveningexpress. McLaren, Andy.
9. Web site: Jonny Hayes signs new Aberdeen contract extension. 7 February 2017. BBC.
10. Web site: Andy Considine signs a new contract with Aberdeen. 14 February 2017. Sky Sports.
11. Web site: Dons agree deal to sign Pawlett. Milton Keynes Dons Official Site . 9 March 2017. 9 March 2017.
12. Web site: Jonny Hayes earns first start for Ireland in friendly defeat to Iceland. Evening Express. 29 March 2017. 30 March 2017.
13. Web site: Tansey signs pre-contract agreement. afc.co.uk. 30 March 2017. 30 March 2017.
14. Web site: McInnes voted Manager of the Month. SPFL. 7 April 2017. 7 April 2017.
15. Web site: St Johnstone 1-2 Aberdeen. BBC Sport. 15 April 2017. 16 April 2017.
16. Web site: Hibernian 1-2 Aberdeen. BBC Sport. 22 April 2017. 22 April 2017.
17. Web site: Celtic dominate PFA Scotland awards with Moussa Dembele shortlisted for two. BBC Sport. 2 May 2017. 3 May 2017.
18. Web site: Morton's Jim Duffy joins Premiership nominees for manager of the year award. BBC Sport. 4 May 2017. 6 May 2017.
19. Web site: Liam Lindsay with Celtic & Dons players in Premiership team of the year. BBC Sport. 5 May 2017. 6 May 2017.
20. Web site: Heart of Midlothian 1-2 Aberdeen. BBC Sport. 7 May 2017. 7 May 2017.
21. News: Dons boss McInnes praises teenager Dean Campbell - Evening Express. Evening Express. 2017-05-13. en-US.
22. Web site: Rangers 1-2 Aberdeen. BBC Sport. 18 May 2017. 18 May 2017.
23. Web site: Partick Thistle 0-6 Aberdeen. BBC Sport. 21 May 2017. 21 May 2017.
24. Web site: Graeme Shinnie to captain Aberdeen for Scottish Cup final. BBC Sport. 24 May 2017. 27 May 2017.
25. Web site: Aberdeen: Derek McInnes admits Ryan Jack plans to quit Dons in summer. BBC Sport. 19 May 2017. 27 May 2017.
26. Web site: Scottish Cup: Near-perfect Aberdeen ran out of legs against Celtic - Derek McInnes. BBC Sport. 27 May 2017. 27 May 2017.
27. Web site: Scottish Cup final: Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers hails 'dream' debut season. BBC Sport. 27 May 2017. 27 May 2017.
28. Web site: Jayden Stockley: Aberdeen sign Bournemouth striker on pre-contract deal. BBC Sport. 11 May 2016. 23 July 2016.
29. Web site: Joe Lewis, Neil Alexander and Callum Morris join Aberdeen. BBC Sport. 16 June 2016. 23 July 2016.
30. Web site: Aberdeen sign Anthony O'Connor from Burton Albion. BBC Sport. 25 June 2016. 23 July 2016.
31. Web site: Aberdeen: Simon Church, David Goodwillie and Scott Brown leave Dons. BBC Sport. 16 May 2016. 24 July 2016.
32. News: Keeper and defender sign after impressive trial spells. wycombewanderers. 26 July 2016. 31 August 2016.
33. Web site: Michael Rose signs for 16/17. Ayr United FC. 18 June 2016. 24 July 2016.
34. Web site: Plymouth Argyle sign David Goodwillie, Jimmy Spencer and Nauris Bulvitis. BBC Sport. 29 June 2016. 24 July 2016.
35. Web site: FLOOD SIGNS - Dundee United. dufc. 14 July 2016. 24 July 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161013182536/http://dufc.co/news/flood-signs/. 13 October 2016. dead.
36. Web site: Callum Morris signs for DAFC. dafc. 31 December 2016. 31 December 2016.
37. Web site: Aberdeen sign Bristol City forward Wes Burns on loan. BBC Sport. 14 July 2016. 23 July 2016.
38. Web site: Norwich City midfielder James Maddison joins Aberdeen on loan. BBC Sport. 31 August 2016. 31 August 2016.
39. Web site: Ryan Christie: Celtic forward joins Aberdeen on loan. BBC Sport. 24 January 2017. 25 January 2017.
40. Web site: G’day to Aaron Lennox. raith rovers.net. 20 June 2016. 24 July 2016.
41. Web site: Aberdeen goalkeeper Danny Rogers returns to Falkirk on season-long loan. BBC Sport. 8 July 2016. 24 July 2016.
42. Web site: Cammy Smith Joins On Loan. dufc. 13 July 2016. 24 July 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161013182539/http://dufc.co/news/cammy-smith-joins-dundee-utd-on-loan/. 13 October 2016. dead.
43. Web site: Loan Signing: Lawrence Shankland. saintmirren.net. 19 July 2016. 24 July 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160825214145/http://www.saintmirren.net/pages/?p=56577. 25 August 2016. dead.
44. Web site: HARVIE JOINS FROM ABERDEEN. Dumbarton FC. 3 August 2016. 30 August 2016.
45. Web site: Striker Signs. Stranraer F.C.. 10 November 2016. 19 November 2016.
46. Web site: Ayr United sign Aberdeen defender Scott McKenna on loan. The Daily Record. Scottish Daily Record and Sunday Mail Ltd . 11 November 2016 . 19 November 2016.
47. Web site: Young Dons forward joins Brechin City on emergency loan deal. Evening Express. DC Thomson & Co Ltd. 16 December 2016. 18 December 2016.
48. Web site: Craig Storie: St Mirren to sign Aberdeen midfielder on loan. BBC Sport. 3 January 2017. 5 January 2017.
49. Web site: Aberdeen striker Lawrence Shankland joins on loan . Greenock Morton FC . 11 January 2017 . 12 January 2017 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170113091010/http://gmfc.net/2017/01/11/aberdeen-striker-lawrence-shankland-joins-on-loan/ . 13 January 2017 .
50. Web site: Aberdeen's Cammy Smith loaned to St Mirren after Dundee Utd spell ends. BBC Sport. 26 January 2017. 26 January 2017.
51. Web site: Signing News. Dumbarton FC. 31 March 2017. 9 April 2017.