Bohemians boss Roddy Collins has guaranteed Aberdeen of a near sell-out crowd of 16,000 for tonight's EUFA Cup preliminary round first leg tie at Pittodrie.
The extrovert Collins, never slow to voice his opinions on any subject, has told Aberdeen supporters that their 55-year-old Danish boss Ebbe Skovdahl is too old for the job.
The vastly experienced Skovdahl, previous boss of top Danish side Brondby, will be taking charge of his 57th European tie tonight. In stark contrast this will be Collins' first Euro assignment as a manager. Not surprisingly Aberdeen supporters were not happy with the outburst from the Bohemians boss. But Collins remains unrepentant. "People may say that Skovdahl has an advantage because he has so much experience in Europe. But maybe that is more a sign that it is time for him to step down - perhaps he is a bit too old for the job now! "Maybe we can show its time for a younger man to take over and I would apply for the post straightaway. I am desperate to prove that I have what it takes to be in charge of such a big club as Aberdeen," said Collins.
In a reference to the Bohemians managers brother Steve Collins the former WBO middleweight champion Skovdahl had the perfect riposte.
"I believe Mr Collins had a brother a famous professional boxer. They always do a lot of talking before big fights. But Roddy Collins has not annoyed me," said the mild spoken Dane.
Bohemians will not name their starting line up until later this morning. But the Aberdeen public will show them little sympathy as indicated in the local bookmakers shops yesterday when the Dublin club were quoted at 7-1 to win the tie over 90-minutes. Collins must make a late decision on whether to include former Irish international midfielder Liam O'Brien in his starting line up.
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