Aberdeen secured their first point in the Conference League campaign with a hard-fought 0-0 draw against AEK Larnaca in Cyprus. The match, held on Thursday, saw Jimmy Thelin's side display a disciplined performance, marking a significant improvement after suffering defeats in their previous matches against FCSB and AEK Athens.
The Dons, still reeling from a 6-0 thrashing by AEK Athens two weeks prior, showed resilience and determination to keep a clean sheet. However, they will rue a missed opportunity in stoppage time when Nicolas Milanovic, a substitute, failed to convert a late chance that could have sealed a surprise victory.
Milanovic's chance came just 30 seconds into stoppage time, after good work from fellow substitute Topi Keskinen on a counter-attack. Keskinen's cross found Milanovic in front of goal, but the Australian winger's shot went off target with the goalkeeper out of position.
Aberdeen also had a late scare when Karol Angielski headed wide in the final moments of the match with Dimitar Mitov, Aberdeen's goalkeeper, stranded. Despite the late drama, Aberdeen managed to hold on for the draw, earning a valuable point in Group G.
The home side started strongly, and the traveling Aberdeen fans might have feared a repeat of their experience in Athens when their team failed to deal with an early corner, and Jimmy Suarez fired well over. However, Thelin's side quickly settled into the game, and Jack Milne had a couple of opportunities at the other end. Milne was slow to react to a ball across the face of goal and soon headed off target from Jesper Karlsson's corner.
Nicky Devlin, the Dons' full-back, had a moment of relief when his sliced clearance looped off target with Mitov scrambling. Mitov then made a good save, diving low to his left to deny Dorde Ivanovic. AEK Larnaca's closest chance in the first half came just before the break when captain Hrvoje Milicevic's 35-yard strike bounced off the foot of the post.
After the break, Pere Pons headed not far over for the hosts, but Aberdeen generally defended well, with Devlin making an excellent block to deny Ivanovic. Aberdeen failed to capitalize on some decent openings, with Keskinen and Karlsson being wasteful with their final ball, although the latter did threaten with a deflected effort. Mitov also had to beat away a swerving long-range strike from Milicevic as Aberdeen sat back to absorb the pressure.
The stalemate means Aberdeen will need to pick up points in their remaining Conference League fixtures against Noah and Strasbourg to have a chance of progressing to the knockout stages.
