“We endorse that position because moving to a massive club like Rangers is a big step with concomitant risk.”
A famous line from a Rangers statement in December 2017 which was in response to Derek McInnes’ decision to remain as Aberdeen manager after weeks of fevered speculation he would make the switch to Ibrox.
The statement went on: “We will only appoint someone in whom we have full confidence and who feels he is ready for the job.”
Then Dons chairman Stewart Milne was the happiest man in the country as his opposite number in Govan, Dave King, tried to fend off the flak that came with the snub with a thinly-veiled, withering jibe.
Close to a decade on, McInnes will this weekend take Rangers to Pittodrie for Sunday’s high noon shootout in the Granite City.
Many Dons fans were left scarred by the episode given their manager had been given time off to weigh up the move as the players got ready for a big league game at Dundee without him.
The back pages were dominated by the story for weeks and it came to a head as the two clubs clashed in back-to-back matches in the space of a few days.
Rangers won both games.
Since McInnes left, the Dons’ record in league games against Rangers has been poor with just three wins in 19 attempts, as Stephen Robinson tries to get the better of McInnes having done so a couple of times last season when the pair were at St Mirren and Hearts respectively.
Pittodrie won’t be the place for those looking for a relaxing Sunday afternoon, with the former Dons boss unlikely to be given a warm welcome, but for the visitor it is a return to where that concomitant risk all began.
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