Dundee United 1-3 Aberdeen: Visitors consign former manager Goodwin to defeat
- Published
Luis 'Duk' Lopes' cheeky finish broke the deadlock
Aberdeen consigned former manager Jim Goodwin to defeat in his first match in charge of Scottish Premiership bottom side Dundee United.
Just over a month after losing his job at Pittodrie, Goodwin watched Luis 'Duk' Lopes sensationally backheel his old club in front after the break.
Jamie McGrath levelled from the penalty spot to give the hosts some hope, but Aberdeen's Ross McCrorie and Marley Watkins struck to keep United four points adrift of Kilmarnock and Ross County.
Aberdeen, who win at Tannadice for the first time in seven years, stay within two points of fourth-placed Hibernian.
Goodwin was sacked by Aberdeen minutes after a 6-0 defeat on 28 January. Thirty-six days later, he was up against the Dons in the first match of his new managerial charge after replacing Liam Fox on Wednesday.
And post match the Irishman said he was targeted by objects from the visiting crowd.
Fox departed after last week's 4-0 humbling away to Ross County and Goodwin's United started in determined fashion with a high tempo. Steven Fletcher was in the thick of things early on, the United striker unable to hit the target with his first effort and his second deflecting wide.
Visiting goalkeeper Jay Gorter then had to deal with an awkward Ryan Edwards header and the defender's next attempt was cleared in the six-yard box.
The man who has replaced Goodwin in the Aberdeen dugout on an interim basis, Barry Robson, was not seeing the same intensity from his players and goalkeeper Gorter caused a bit of panic when he came out to close down Fletcher. Gorter's foot was high as he won the ball and Fletcher went down but the striker was offside.
Gorter was off his line again early in the second half to punch clear a long ball and came into collision with team-mate Ylber Ramadani, who needed a fair bit of treatment to continue.
Fletcher knocked an Aziz Behich straight at Gorter moments later as the hosts maintained control.
However, Edwards' attempted clearance cannoned off Duk, who then held off the defender as he burst into the box from the left and slipped a backheel past Mark Birighitti - a 13th goal of the season for the winger.
United were deflated but were handed a lifeline. Forward Bojan Miovski was deep inside his own half when he passed the ball behind team-mate Graeme Shinnie and Anaku stole possession before being cleaned out by MacKenzie. McGrath struck confidently from 12 yards.
Aberdeen had scarcely deserved their earlier lead but they found themselves in front again when Leighton Clarkson crossed low from the left for McCrorie to finish expertly.
And, following another Edwards slip-up, Clarkson teed up Watkins on the left side of the box for his first goal in 15 months just seconds after coming on.
McGrath juggled a loose ball and forced Gorter into a save, the hosts' last real opportunity of a frustrating night.
Player of the match - Leighton Clarkson
The Aberdeen midfielder (right) made crucial contributions to their second and third goals
Familiar frailties despite improved United - analysis
One of the defeats that started to put Goodwin under pressure at Aberdeen was a 4-0 loss at Tannadice back in October.
United started that match with a fierceness and though they showed similar intent this time, they could not get the goals when they were on top.
All three Aberdeen goals originated on the right of the home defence, an area the visitors targeted more and more as the match wore on.
However, Dundee United's commitment in the opening hour and the heart they showed to get back level should provide some cause for optimism.
The Dons' lack of penetration limited their ambitions somewhat with Miovski too isolated in attack for large spells.
Duk and Clarkson provided the inspiration they needed for the points and Robson continues to enhance his case to be given the manager's job longer term.
What the managers said
Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin says he was hit on the head by a coin
Dundee Untied manager Jim Goodwin: "We're extremely disappointed with the final result tonight but I do believe there are plenty of positives for me to take. We had plenty of good opportunities, particularly in the first half.
"A draw would've been a fair result. I don't think there was a great deal between the two teams. It's a couple of mistakes at key moments in the game which have cost the goals. That's something that we need to eradicate and we need to do that pretty quickly."
Aberdeen interim manager Barry Robson: "Our away form is not good. The most important part was getting a result away from home. We've looked a bit more structured. Positionally, they never panicked. We could've played a bit more football. They kept fighting and we looked really dangerous on transition, which we've been working on.
"I'm just pleased that our boys came out fighting on top. Let's not get carried away. You can see a bit of nervousness in us. We've not done anything yet."
What's next?
Dundee United play their Premiership game in hand away to Livingston on Wednesday (19:45 GMT) and Aberdeen's next game is at home to league opponents Hearts on 18 March.