Aberdeen vs St. Johnstone. Scottish Premiership.
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Match report as Luis 'Duk' Lopes scores twice in the second half to secure 2-0 win for Aberdeen; Dons forward saw first-half strike disallowed for offside, while Bojan Miovski missed several chances; Aberdeen are fourth in Scottish Premiership and St Johnstone are seventh
Saturday 7 January 2023 21:02, UK
Aberdeen ended a run of five Scottish Premiership games without a win thanks to Luis 'Duk' Lopes' second-half double in a 2-0 win against St Johnstone.
Duk had seen a first-half strike ruled out by VAR and out-of-sorts forward Bojan Miovski could have had a hat-trick in a game the Dons could have had out of sight by the interval.
Returning Dons man Graeme Shinnie came straight into the team, slotting into the midfield alongside Ylber Ramadani, and the on-loan Wigan player added some steel to his side's performance.
The Dons were straight on the attack, with Miovski picking up on a loose touch from Leighton Clarkson, only to see his weak effort beaten away by Remi Matthews in the Saints' goal.
Matty Kennedy sent a free-kick narrowly wide before St Johnstone came close to opening the scoring through Stevie May, the former Dons man meeting a superb Drey Wright cross but seeing his bullet header flash wide of the upright, with Aberdeen 'keeper Kelle Roos static.
The home side had the ball in the net midway through the first half when Duk turned on a smart Clarkson free-kick before drilling home a low, angled shot from the left side of the six-yard box, but a VAR check ruled the Cape Verde international to be offside.
Miovski has not scored since before the World Cup break but he was unlucky not to end that run when he lifted over Matthews after Alex Mitchell's weak defensive header, but the 'keeper got a touch to take the power off the shot and was able to recover on the line.
Another defensive error, on this occasion from Liam Gordon, saw Miovski through on goal again, but this time his left-footed effort was parried away by the goalkeeper.
The second half descended into a bitty affair, with St Johnstone happy to break up the flow of the game, while neither side really got into a rhythm and there was little action in front of goal as a result.
But after 74 minutes, the home side finally broke the deadlock. With three Dons men charging at the heart of the St Johnstone defence, substitute Vicente Besuijen held the ball up well and rolled into the path of Duk, who stabbed into the bottom-left corner.
Duk then had the ball in the net again 10 minutes later as he and Liam Scales both rose to meet a Jonny Hayes corner, with the striker getting the final touch to turn the ball home from six yards to seal a much-needed win for his side.
Aberdeen manager Jim Goodwin was a relieved man after Duk's two late goals closed the gap on third-placed Hearts to three points: "I thought we deserved the three points over the piece.
"First half, I thought we were excellent. St Johnstone didn't cause us too many problems at the back and we passed the ball about well. We were unfortunate with one or two of the decisions that went against us.
"It looked like it might be a carbon copy of Monday where we were in complete control of the game without getting the breakthrough, but I have to give great credit to the players.
"They've been on a difficult run but have stuck together and it's good for Duk to get back on the scoresheet."
St Johnstone boss Callum Davidson was left to rue the defensive error that allowed Aberdeen to break the deadlock and admitted his frustration at the soft nature of the goal.
"We knew Aberdeen would come and have a go at us," he said. "They were under pressure to get a result.
"I thought we set up really well and were hard to play against. As the second half wore on we got more possession higher up the pitch.
"I thought when they scored the goal we were starting to take control and it's frustrating for me. We did everything right and from one long ball, you go behind."
Aberdeen's attention turns to the League Cup, with a semi-final against Rangers at Hampden Park on Sunday January 15 - kick-off 3pm.
The Dons' next Scottish Premiership match is away to Hearts on January 18 - kick-off 7.45pm.
St Johnstone's next game is at home to Livingston in the league on Saturday - kick-off 3pm.
