Started having a look at Larnaca so thought I may as well start the thread.  On the face of it this is a game we should be looking to win.  In actuality, despite being a smaller team and having a squad value 10 million lower than ours and a wage bill less than half according to t'internet, this mob went to Palace and won 1-0 despite playing most of the second half with ten men.  Clearly they are no mugs.  We do have one reasonable advantage in that they have two games to play before we meet.   One is currently underway, the Cypriot super cup final against Pafos which is 1-1 after half time. Didnt see the Pafos goal but Larnacas qualiser was a very well taken header from an excellent ball in from deep.   Hard to say much more as the feed keeps dropping so you can't really get a feel for the game. 

They then have Limassol on Sunday so by the time they get around to playing us that will be their 6th game in 19 days.  That's a gruelling schedule for any squad and will defo have an impact on their preperations.  All in I think we can get something from this but we need to make sure we stay in the game to take advantage of their inevitable tiring in the second half.  

 

3 minutes ago, tlg1903 said:

My first thought was 343 2bh Al

Could easily be TLG, so many different formations nowadays

Oh for the days when teams used to play five up front 😂

58 minutes ago, tlg1903 said:

My first thought was 343 2bh Al

Yep, 3-4-3, or 3-4-2-1, as Lazetic likes to press higher than Nisbet. I don't agree with Armstrong and Aouchiche in the same team, I'd have one or the other. I think Armstrong leaves too many gaps as a number 8, and we should maybe even consider playing Aouchiche there and Armstrong where he played against Killie. 

Really poor there's half a stand empty next to the Aberdeen fans, considering the amount who are there without tickets.

11 minutes ago, Panda said:

Really poor there's half a stand empty next to the Aberdeen fans, considering the amount who are there without tickets.

Exhibit A.

Apparently the queues to get in are also horrendous.

Why is it passing so slow. Takes an age to get up the pitch

6 minutes ago, redordead said:

Why is it passing so slow. Takes an age to get up the pitch

Have you checked your WiFi?

Half an hour in, at the risk of jinxing it, we have looked pretty solid so far.

 

1 hour ago, Panda said:

Really poor there's half a stand empty next to the Aberdeen fans, considering the amount who are there without tickets.

Simple explanation

https://cyprus-mail.com/2024/08/20/cap-of-800-away-fans-set-for-high-risk-football-matches

Sure this was explained as soon as the ticket allocation was announced.

Sure this was reported in the red tops. Scotland's national broadcaster must have missed this unfortunately 

Jesus, what a fucking strike off the post that was 

Half time

Nothing each

Could we nick this on the second half 🤔

Looks like a 4-3-3 to me and the line up is a bit of a head scratcher in midfield. If Jimmy wanted somebody to sit in front of the defenders to pick the ball up and get things going then surely it’s Clarkson not Aouchiche. 

1 minute ago, BigAl said:

Half time

Nothing each

Could we nick this on the second half 🤔

We don’t look like scoring. 

23 minutes ago, redordead said:

Why is it passing so slow. Takes an age to get up the pitch

To be fair, as the half has gone on it's become more noticeable. Think it's affected Larnaca more than us though, they've had more misplaced passes.

 

As for the first half. Polvara and Aouchiche moving it about well, Armstrong's late runs are causing them issues, and Lobban continues to impress.

Their chances are long range shots. They've been quite good at them though!

Decent first half performance, a few shaky moments and they’ve clearly got guys that can shoot. Comms were wondering if the grass was a bit long but yeah, definitely affecting both teams. Hopefully we can keep it up and start to get a bit more luck with the balls into dangerous areas. Crowd atmosphere on the Cypriot stream is a lot louder than tnt 🤣

6 minutes ago, Kowalski said:

We don’t look like scoring. 

We really don't. Fair play to lazetic though, he does well against the centre halves.

Been in an out whilst cooking the tea, we look quite solid. JT obviously listened to me and has kept Armstrong further forward. Aouchiche played deep against the Tims for a bit when we played them, and it seems to suit him better. Would obviously prefer Clarkson, but there's clearly an issue there, fitness or otherwise. Lobban reminded me a lot of Jack when I saw him last season, and that rings true watching him tonight - very similar to the rat cunt when he came through at right back, aggressive positionally and mature. 

Would like to see us take it to them a bit, but we're the away side and we can hold it tight for a bit first. 

I’d have Shinnie on the left instead of Jensen. We lose so much momentum from Jensen hesitating and turning onto his right foot.

Edited November 6, 2025Nov 6 by Slim
Gyamfi will do instead

I think we've been the better team, and just some poor decision making has meant we're not ahead.

Huge last 15 mins though.

Nothing less than we deserved

Sorry for doubting you

Milanovic could and should have won it for us but Angelski could also have won it for them.

All things considered a decent point for us and we move on

Jack Milne our MOTM

Decent result. I've given topi stick but he was really good there. Milanovic didn't want it. He's been really disappointing since coming in. 

Team playing ok, just lack edge to get in behind. Often we're trying to find feet forty yards away instead of hitting the channel and turning the defence.

P S. we are up to to fifth bottom 👍

Didn't catch the middle half, but it was good to see a well organised Dons team not giving up too many chances. Another clean sheet is impressive too. Milanovic a bit unlucky, it came at him on his wrong foot quite quickly. You just stick your leg at those ones and at least half the time they just go in. Fantastic from Keskinen, it was good to see him recognising that the guy he was up against was pulling a lorry and just go for it. Too often, he'd make the wrong call. 

Lobban really good, and the back three. Milne especially looking good again. He looked shattered in the Athens and Hibs games, unsurprisingly given he's played a lot of fitba, so it's nice to see that his form wasn't just a temporary thing. Both lads will be crucial for us in the coming years (either by playing, or being sold!).

2 minutes ago, BigAl said:

P S. we are up to to fifth bottom 👍

Second time we've won the "not bottom of the league anymore" trophy this year, end the season now

 

Credit to them for that. That's a team that has beat Crystal Palace, and hammered AZ Alkmaar and Brann. And yet, away from home, I thought we were better team.

You can see how distraught Milanovic is at the end for missing that chance, but it's actually a tougher chance than it looks. Difficult to shape your body to direct it in.

Jack Milne excellent. Not just for the headers he won, but also the way he steps into the middle of the park and links the play. 

Still need two wins at least to qualify, potentially two wins and a draw, but I think at the moment it's more about taking confidence from these games after the poor start rather than stressing about getting through.

Unbeaten in four out of six, clean sheets in four from six, unbeaten in three away games in a row (all with cleans sheets).

Good away performance, looked solid with Jack Milne the pick of the bunch. Another impressive display from Dylan Lobban and some decent performances on display with Gyamfi also coming back from injury so a lot to like.