THE ongoing commitment of Derek McInnes to Aberdeen is beyond question – because he could have jumped ship to Sunderland in the summer if he had wanted to. That is the opinion of Dons’ goalkeeper Joe Lewis, regardless of the fact his gaffer once again finds his name linked with the vacant Ibrox manager’s position in the wake of Pedro Caixinha’s departure from the club yesterday.
Even the Portuguese aimed a barb at McInnes last season over his apparent desire to take the manager’s position at this boyhood heroes, but the 46-year-old from Paisley had the perfect riposte to all speculation about his future during the summer when he rebuffed an approach from the Wearside club to extend his Aberdeen contract until the summer of 2020.
That fact alone will make negotiations with the Pittodrie side even more complicated this time around should Rangers resolve to pursue his services, and in any case Lewis is adamant that McInnes, who has steered Aberdeen to League Cup glory and three successive Premiership second place finishes, is going nowhere. None other than Brendan Rodgers also put his name forward for the Scotland job.
“We don’t want to lose the manager, no,” said Lewis. “He’s a great manager. He has done an amazing job here. And you can see he is committed to the cause after the advances from clubs in the summer. He is obviously committed here, the players are committed and we need to make sure we show that with our performances.
“As a manager and a player, if you are being linked with moves you are doing a good job,” added the goalkeeper. “I’m sure he will be flattered by the interest, but like I said before he has shown his commitment to the club in the summer and we are all pleased to back him.
“The manager has been massive for me. He gave me the confidence when I first came here. He told me I was his No 1 and gave me the idea of how he wanted me to play. I feel like I have done well under him. So I am very pleased and I enjoy playing under him.”
One man who will definitely be leaving the club soon, and perhaps even to Rangers, is midfielder Kenny McLean, who has indicated he will not renew his contract when it expires this summer. Like Ryan Jack last season, Lewis is sure that the former St Mirren midfielder has the professionalism to deal with the situation.
“He’s a professional footballer, who works very hard in training,” said Lewis. “He gives 100 per cent and I’m sure he will do that every time he pulls on the red shirt. Players like Ryan Jack and Niall McGinn showed those performances in similar situations last season, that was a credit to their professionalism and Kenny is no different. Regardless of what happens at the end of the season, he will give 100 per cent while he is with Aberdeen.”
Lewis was speaking in the immediate aftermath of the 3-0 defeat to Celtic at Pittodrie, a result which leaves the rampant Scottish champions just one match away from equalling the longest-ever unbeaten run in British football, the 62 matches which Willy Maley’s Celtic strung together between November 1915 and April 1917 at the height of the Great War. He said it was no consolation to lose to such an imperious outfit and insisted Aberdeen had gone into the match believing were capable of victory. While he wasn’t giving up on the title race right now, cutting into those 30-point arrears at the end of last season would at least be something.
“We believed we could beat them,” said Lewis. “We felt like it was probably a good opportunity to play them. I think we probably could have kept the ball better.
“But on the day they played well,” he added. “The Scottish Cup final was something we referred back to, because we played well that day. The game plan was to replicate that to a certain degree but obviously also get the win. For whatever reason, it didn’t happen and they put in a good performance.
“We don’t want to let them run away with it. We want to stay with them for as long as we possibly can and see what that brings towards the back end of the season. We want to get closer to them, that’s for sure.”
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