Aberdeen maintained their 100 per cent begin to the season with a deserved 2-0 win over 10-player Kilmarnock at Pittodrie.
Pape Habib Gueye headed house each targets, both facet of Killie captain Brad Lyons seeing crimson – after a VAR evaluation – for a problem on Ester Sokler early within the second half.
Killie boss Derek McInnes, himself a former Aberdeen supervisor, had stoked tensions earlier than the match, suggesting his facet shouldn’t face such a prolonged journey after Thursday’s Europa Convention League qualifying defeat to FC Copenhagen.
In the meantime, the Dons had been bolstered by the mortgage arrival of Scotland striker Kevin Nisbet from Millwall, although he began on the bench.
There was a primary Dons begin for winger Topi Keskinen, who scored after coming off the bench within the League Cup win over Queen’s Park final Saturday, whereas McInnes made two adjustments from the facet that had lined up in Denmark.
Aberdeen had been instantly on the entrance foot and will have been in entrance after 11 minutes when Sokler and Gueye had been unable to benefit from quickfire crosses from Jack MacKenzie and Jamie McGrath.
McGrath was concerned once more in creating a possibility for Keskinen, with the winger dragging his effort huge of the publish.
Killie’s first actual likelihood got here within the twenty second minute as Liam Donnelly slipped in David Watson, regardless of the problem of Graeme Shinnie, however goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov was equal to the hassle.
A minute later, Aberdeen had been forward. They moved up the sphere patiently, working the ball to the left the place Shinnie delivered a cross for Gueye to peel off his man and head house on the again publish.
Kilmarnock had a penalty declare shortly afterwards when Marley Watkins collided with house defender Gavin Molloy, however the declare was waved away.
The guests had been coming again into the sport following the introduction of Bruce Anderson for Watson, however Lyons’ straight-leg problem on Sokler after 53 minutes noticed him despatched off and the Dons regain management.
Sokler ought to have scored from shut vary earlier than the hour, MacKenzie once more offering the left-wing cross which the striker in some way turned over the crossbar from eight yards.
When the second aim arrived, it was virtually a carbon copy of the primary. This time it was a McGrath nook from the left that noticed Gueye discover area and once more he directed a header in on the far publish.
With the factors within the bag, Aberdeen made a slew of adjustments, together with handing debuts to Nisbet and midfielder Ante Palaversa, with a few half-chances falling to MacKenzie and McGrath.
And a expensive day for Killie was compounded as the sport entered stoppage time, with Stuart Findlay withdrawn as a concussion substitution following a conflict of heads with Peter Ambrose.
