Aberdeen remain one of Scotland’s established clubs: founded in 1903, based at Pittodrie Stadium, and still carrying enough weight to matter in the Premiership conversation. They finished third in the prior league campaign, a position that kept them in the relevant part of the table without disguising the unevenness beneath it.
The squad was sizeable, with 34 players and an average age of 25, and was valued at around £13.5m by Transfermarkt. Kevin Nisbet was the clear scoring reference point with six goals, while Dan Happe, Kjartan Már Kjartansson, Brad Lyons and Toyosi Olusanya each contributed one.
Their league pattern was awkward rather than mysterious. Aberdeen often began matches well, scoring the first goal inside 20 minutes in six of 10 league games, but their away form carried a clear weakness: 0.6 goals scored and 1.7 conceded per match. At Pittodrie, the numbers were steadier, with 1.5 scored and 1.2 conceded.
Recent league form before the new campaign was poor, with defeats to Hearts, Dundee and St Mirren following a run that had included wins over Dundee United and Kilmarnock, plus a 2-2 draw at Livingston. They enter the 2026-27 pre-season as a top-three Premiership side with obvious relevance to Celtic, but also with flaws that were visible enough by the end of the previous campaign.
📈 Key stats and insights
⚔️ How they compare to Celtic
Celtic had the edge across the key measures last season. They scored far more heavily at home and away, conceded less in both splits, and offered a level of attacking threat Aberdeen rarely matched outside Pittodrie. For Celtic supporters, the danger was not sustained Aberdeen dominance but isolated home pressure, set-piece territory and the kind of open game that produced their bigger wins.
