Can Aberdeen still reach Conference League knockouts?

When Aberdeen suffered their heaviest ever European defeat by shipping six goals at AEK Athens last month, even the most optimistic supporter must have written off their hopes of reaching the knockout stages of the Conference League.

However, a much-improved display at AEK Larnaca on Thursday earned Jimmy Thelin's side their first European point of the season and kept their slim chances of progression alive.

They host Noah of Armenia and France's Strasbourg in their next two Conference League matches, before finishing the league stage in the Czech Republic against Sparta Prague.

Last season, eight points guaranteed a spot in the play-off round, while Celje, Omonia Nicosia, Molde and TSC progressed with seven points.

Scotland's representatives - Hearts - also accrued seven points but missed out having scored fewer goals than TSC.

So, what do Aberdeen likely need if they are to upset the odds and go beyond the league stage?

'Hopefully it turns out to be good point'

Using last term as a marker, Aberdeen need two victories as a minimum.

Noah at Pittodrie will be marked as a must-win match, but Strasbourg will undoubtedly travel to the Granite City as favourites.

That leaves the trip to European regulars Sparta in mid-December - it feels a very tall order, especially given Aberdeen's inability to string wins together of late.

Still, defender Nicky Devlin hopes Aberdeen can look back on the trip to Cyprus as the start of something special.

"Hopefully it turns out to be a really important point for us," he said.

"It was important we got back to a lot of things the manager has been talking to us about, especially after the last away game in Europe which was really disappointing.

"Hopefully at the end of the league campaign this turns out to be a good point."

The scale of the task facing Aberdeen only grows when one considers those three Conference League matches come in a run of nine matches in 28 days after the international break.

In that time, they also need to build momentum domestically - they are ninth in the Premiership with the worst attacking record in the division.

The vital Noah encounter follows high-flying Hearts coming to Pittodrie, while the Sparta game comes three days before a trip to Celtic.

Thelin is not looking too far ahead, choosing to take the positives from the point in Cyprus.

"We have to start somewhere," he said. "We have had four clean sheets in the last six games. We are playing more compact, more together, supporting each other on the pitch.

"And after the game you saw the connection between players and supporters. This is so important for Aberdeen, doing things together."