ABERDEEN captain Graeme Shinnie yesterday gained a new team-mate and lost a lodger.
Some explaining is perhaps required. The Pittodrie club announced that after an 18 month and botched attempt, the finally have signed on a pre-contract Greg Tansey from Inverness. A very fine addition to Derek McInnes’s squad.
Shinnie knows the midfielder well. The won a Scottish Cup together with the club from the Highland capital but that’s not the end of their relationship.
“He rents my house so I will need to try to get someone else in there now,” revealed Shinnie about Tansey. “I will need to text him to make sure he has cleaned the house and check for any damage.
“I will take his signing on fee if there are any problems with the house. I didn’t speak to him about the move. It is personal to him. I wouldn’t ask him where he was going to go. I didn’t even know if he was going to leave Inverness.
“It is one of those things. He obviously made the decision himself and felt he could develop his career here. That was his choice so it is one we are happy with as he can add so much to our team.”
McInnes believes Tansey is good enough to walk into the team even if Ryan Jack, who plays in his position, accepts the offer of a new contract. He has hoped to sign him last January, the story going that Inverness ducked and dived until the deal couldn’t’ be done
“I wouldn't have signed him if I didn't think he was a player that could play here,” said McInnes “He’ll fit right in with our team. We like to get the ball down and pass and play.
“We're always conscious of getting more goals from midfield set-plays are a big part of our make-up and Greg's got great delivery. If we lose Niall, who a lot of the time is our set-piece taker, I think Greg gives us that as well. He's going to have a big influence I feel on our team.
“We never got Greg before. He showed a willingness to come here the last time and it didn't happen for loads of reasons and reasons outwith his control. But we've now got the chance to work with him next season.
“I think that he's a fantastic player, he's always a player I've admired. He's got good passing range, he's got assists, he's got a goal in him, he's a competitor, a great lad by all accounts and I think he's at a good age to come to Aberdeen. “
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