‘Matured’ Findlay Marshall backed to make his mark at Aberdeen by Gothenburg Great

Gothenburg Great Neil Simpson believes Findlay Marshall is ready to establish himself at Aberdeen after maturing at Arbroath.

The 20-year-old midfielder looked to be heading out of Pittodrie but a stellar season on loan at Arbroath where he scored 15 goals in 47 games for the Scottish Championship club has led to Marshall being given a new contract with the Dons.

Club legend Simpson, part of the dominant Aberdeen side of the 1980s, was pathways manager at the Dons prior to leaving the Dons in the summer of 2024 after 35 years at the club.

Having watched Marshall grow following loan spells with Edinburgh City, Cove Rangers and the Red Lichties, Simpson believes Marshall is ready to meet the challenge set by new head coach Stephen Robinson of establishing himself in the Aberdeen first team.

Simpson said: “I don’t see why he can’t be involved next year.

“He knows the game and I feel that that this season he has grown at Arbroath and really come on.

“I used to go and watch Findlay when he was at Edinburgh City and I would come back and I would say ‘Findlay Marshall, best player on the pitch. Unbelievable.’

“Then we’d play an Aberdeenshire Cup game on the Tuesday and Findlay was quiet as anything.

“At that point I was going ‘are you kidding me?’

“But I could see he just needed at little time. Some players take a wee bit longer than others, but he’s got a good head on him.”

Fans want to see homegrown players get their chance

There has been a growing trend of young academy players coming through to first-team level at Pittodrie with Jack Milne establishing himself this season while Dylan Lobban has also made his first team debut.

Marshall is the next in line to get his chance and Simpson, who also came through the youth ranks at the club to win two European trophies under Sir Alex Ferguson, has welcomed the appearance of young Scots from the academy in the squad.

He said: “I think we want to see more homegrown players being involved who have got that affiliation, who have maybe been at the club for 10 years.

“Everybody who they’ve brought through knows the philosophy of the club. Sometimes that enthusiasm of youth, it really gets everybody up.

“The enthusiasm goes up within the club and supporters enjoy that as well.

“Obviously, we want a winning team, but when it’s a young boy giving his best, I think the fans really enjoy that.

“We need a reset. I think we signed too many players in the summer. There wasn’t any continuity.

“You need your core players that have got to play every week and others fighting for a place.

“If you don’t perform somebody will come in and then it’s up to you to fight your way back into the team.”

Simpson hoping for more stability next season at Pittodrie

Simpson’s association with the Dons may have come to an end but his affinity for the club continues at Pittodrie where he is a regular attendee at matches.

The campaign was a struggle for Aberdeen, who regressed following their Scottish Cup win at Hampden a year ago.

Simpson believes the incessant scrutiny has also added to the downbeat mood at the club this season but he remains optimistic Aberdeen can bounce back.

He said: “The Scottish Cup final last year was one of the best days I’ve had as a supporter.

“I could imagine it must have felt like Aberdeen winning the league in the 80s or the cup in 1982 when they hadn’t won it since 1970.

“It stirs a huge bit of enthusiasm.

“It’s been a hard watch this year but I do enjoy going to games and being a bystander rather than in the midst of it.

“You can have an opinion now. I would always be supportive of the players because it’s hard receiving criticism here, there and everywhere.

“I’ve always made a point of having a chat with them to make sure that they’re okay because it’s a tough world now for a footballer.

“You get criticism from everybody on social media as well as from the press.

“Before, people would just speak about it in the pub. As a player you wouldn’t hear about it.

“There seems to be, to me, too much rotation but look, I’m a supporter of Aberdeen regardless of whether they up the top of the league or down the bottom.

“I’ve got an affiliation that I’ll never leave.”

[Source: Press and Journal]