Hibernian 0-0 Aberdeen (5-6 pens): Dons win shootout to reach last four
- Published
Hibernian's Thomas Agyepong's (right) missed from the spot as Aberdeen reached their fourth League Cup semi-final in six years
Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes hailed his team's "mental strength" after they beat Hibernian in a penalty shootout to reach the League Cup semi-finals.
After a goalless 120 minutes, Joe Lewis saved from Stevie Mallan before Thomas Agyepong hit the bar as the Dons won 6-5 on penalties to progress.
Hibs had largely dominated the opening 90 minutes but wasted several chances.
"When it comes to penalties, I've never been one to say it's a lottery," McInnes told BBC Scotland.
"There's a mental strength, a technique required. We practised yesterday and I was confident with each one of them that they would score.
"I'm delighted my team showed the bravery, courage and technique to get the job done."
Earlier, Dominic Ball had fired a free-kick against the bar for Aberdeen but Florian Kamberi, Martin Boyle, Oli Shaw and Ryan Porteous all missed good opportunities for Hibs, with Boyle also having two goals disallowed - one for handball, the other for offside.
Lewis saved Mallan's opening spot-kick to give the Dons the initiative in the shootout, but Hibs levelled it at 2-2 after Niall McGinn's effort was saved. Seven further successful penalties followed as Scott McKenna gave Aberdeen a 6-5 lead before Agyepong struck the bar.
It is the fourth time in six years Aberdeen have reached the last four of the tournament, with the draw to be made after Wednesday's three remaining quarter-finals.
"It was a tough game but we defended really well," Lewis told BBC Scotland. "We're really pleased to be in the next round. It's the first time I've won penalties in my career so it's very pleasing to do that and to make a contribution."
Aberdeen hold their nerve
Hibs are seen as the great entertainers, but Aberdeen boss McInnes was in no mood to see his side opened up. Every time Hibs reached the final third they were met by a mountain of red shirts.
It worked for a while. Aberdeen were soaking up the Hibs pressure and trying to sucker-punch their hosts. Ball rattled the crossbar with a free-kick while Gary Mackay-Steven skimmed a shot wide of the post.
But Hibs eventually began to find the gaps and impose themselves on the visitors.
Kamberi turned past Lewis but shot wide with the goal at his mercy and a series of short passes ended with Emerson Hyndman, who later forced a save from Lewis, shooting over.
Boyle had the ball in the net but his effort was ruled out for using his arm to control it. Minutes later the Hibs winger raced through again, but this time screwed his effort well wide.
Kamberi bamboozled Michael Devlin, cut on to his right foot, but shot over. Paul Hanlon fired against the goalkeeper from a free-kick, and then had Kamberi showed more composure he could have turned in Boyle's cross when given the freedom of the Aberdeen box.
Frustration grows for Hibs
Hyndman twice was invited to shoot from the edge of the box - dragging an effort wide then testing Lewis low down with his second.
Boyle again put the ball in the net, this time ruled out for offside, then Shaw raced through but his shot at glory whizzed past the far post.
Aberdeen waited until extra-time to show more purpose. Stevie May did well to flick the ball forward but the finish was lacking, as it was minutes later when Ball sent through McGinn on the right.
Porteous should have buried a header from two yards out, but found Dons defender Andy Considine's shoulder instead of the net.
And they were made to pay for those misses as Aberdeen did the business from the penalty spot to book a semi-final spot.
Agyepong (second left) is consoled by his teammates after missing the last penalty
'Fascinating two hours of football' - analysis
BBC Scotland's Brian McLauchlin at Easter Road
This was a game that had just about everything, with the exception of goals. It was a fascinating two hours of football with the tactical nous of McInnes up against the wise warrior in Neil Lennon.
For Hibernian, if only Kamberi, Boyle and Hyndman had shown just a little more composure then this game would have been over long before the need for penalties was required to decide their fate.
In the end it took a dramatic penalty shootout before the Dons eventually found their way into the last four. Even the most diehard Aberdonian will feel Lady Luck was on their side.
Hibernian are a fantastic side to watch and if their strikers can find their goal scoring prowess in big games it won't be too long before they can dream again of cup glory.
The real pity was there was only just over 11,000 fans inside Easter Road to witness a terrific game of football played by two teams who try to play the game in a proper fashion.
'Dons went through the ringer' - reaction
Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes: "There were two teams going at each other. You can see we're still not having that top performance that we're working towards. We could have used the ball better and broken better than we did.
"But another clean sheet shows the resilience of the team. I feel for Neil and his team, it's clear he's got a good team here. They normally score at home, not many teams come here and keep clean sheets. We had to defend well. Joe's had a couple of good saves.
"We went through the ringer. There's enough good about us to get results but we're still looking for that slickness and attacking threat. When you go on a cup run, there are moments when you look back and resilience; a bit of luck is all it takes sometimes."