Jim Goodwin: Aberdeen sack manager after 6-0 Scottish Premiership defeat at Hibernian

Aberdeen have sacked manager Jim Goodwin after Saturday’s 6-0 Scottish Premiership defeat at Hibernian.

The Irishman was already under huge pressure following an embarrassing 1-0 Scottish Cup defeat at sixth-tier side Darvel on Monday.

Goodwin had been warned by the club’s board that they were “seeking an immediate response” after the loss at the West of Scotland League Premier Division champions.

Sixth-tier Darvel stun Aberdeen
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Highlights of the Scottish Premiership match between Hibernian and Aberdeen

But the Dons were humbled 6-0 at Easter Road, with the club announcing the 41-year-old’s departure just 19 minutes after full-time.

A club statement said: “Following an unacceptable run of results since the World Cup break, the club confirms it has parted company with Jim Goodwin and first-team assistant manager Lee Sharp with immediate effect.”

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Sky Sports News understands the Aberdeen board will meet on Sunday to discuss the future and direction of the club.

It is expected a plan for the remainder of the transfer window will also be on the agenda with the Dons trying to bring defenders to Pittodrie in this window.

A bid for Go Ahead Eagles centre-back Jay Idzes was rejected, but the Aberdeen remain in pre-contract talks with his agent.

Aberdeen, who have won just one of their last 10 games in all competitions, have fallen to seventh in the Scottish Premiership.

Goodwin departs after less than a year in charge at Pittodrie having joined from fellow Scottish Premiership side St Mirren in February 2022 to replace Stephen Glass.

But Aberdeen are now looking for their fourth manager in two years after the departures of Goodwin, Glass and Derek McInnes since 2021.

Emotional Dons owner: ‘I’m embarrassed, humiliated!’

Image: Dons chairman Cormack gave an emotional interview about Goodwin's sacking

Aberdeen owner Dave Cormack spoke to Sky Sports News following Goodwin’s sacking:

“For somebody who doesn’t get lost for words, I’m lost for words.

“I saw fans there again today, 1,700 of them supporting the team and singing the whole game. I’ve been a fan my whole life and like them, I’m embarrassed, humiliated and shocked by the results.

“Jim is a good man and he’s given it everything here. I met him after the game and he came up to me and gave me a hug and said: ‘I know Dave, it is simply not good enough’. So, we part company for obvious reasons.

“Since coming back from the World Cup our form, other than one or two games, has been poor. Some of the players also need to take responsibility.

Image: Goodwin departs Pittodrie after less than a year in charge

“For me personally, I’m a Dons fan and I’m 64 now. I’ve been going for nearly 60 years. I take responsibility.

“At the end of the day, I’m the chairman of the club and I’ve overseen, on the football side, the changes we’ve made. It’s no consolation for fans to hear how well things are going off the field commercially, with fan engagement or our youth academies.

“They deserve better than that. I’m absolutely determined to get this right and we will double down with the board our vision and our strategy across the club, right through to moving stadium which is the right strategy.

“The most important thing and critical thing in any business – and football is a business too – is actually making sure you have the right people in place to execute on all aspects, and unfortunately, since we came back from the World Cup, it’s just been really challenging.

“At Hibernian, like the fans, I felt quite humiliated and I’m sorry. That’s the message I want to give the fans. That’s the message I want to give today and I’m quite emotional about the club. It means everything to me. It’s our home city and I’ve been going a long time.

“As chairman, I’m rightly getting the pelters. I deserve it but I’m determined to get it right.”

‘Goodwin’s sacking was inevitable’

Image: Goodwin is the third Aberdeen boss to depart the club since 2021

Sky Sports News reporter Luke Shanley at Easter Road:

“It was inevitable. You could already see the ‘Goodwin Out’ banners before the game.

“So, when they were 2-0 down after 14 minutes, the fans weren’t chanting his name with any great deal of pleasure. They were wanting him to leave the club and it just went from bad to worse.

“This is a Hibs team that has been struggling to score. They haven’t been great themselves, but they played really well against Aberdeen. If you think Aberdeen lost 5-0 to Hearts and then there was the Darvel result, who are in the sixth tier of Scottish football.

“The statement then came out in midweek form Aberdeen saying that an instant response was required. Well, if that was an immediate response then it is not only Jim Goodwin who needs to have a long hard look at himself, but also the players as well.

“Hibs were excellent, but it says a lot about Aberdeen that they were just so poor. It was obvious.

“In the tunnel, he didn’t speak to the media in any official capacity, but he came and said thanks for all your help before walking away. We knew then his time was up. The Jim Goodwin era was over.”

Where could Aberdeen go next?

Aberdeen's next six fixtures

St Mirren (h) – February 1
Motherwell (h) – February 4
Celtic (a) – February 18
Livingston (h) – February 25
Dundee Utd (a) – March 4
Hearts (h) – March 18

Sky Sports News reporter Luke Shanley:

“They have a game against St Mirren on Wednesday, so the games come thick and fast.

“There’s a transfer window that also closes at midnight on Tuesday in Scotland, and they have other big games to come like Motherwell and Celtic.

“So, they really need to get a move on, but given that statement was made during the week, you would like to think that the Aberdeen board were starting to think about potential replacements, although they were willing to give Goodwin the chance to turn things around against Hibernian.

“They will have to get someone in quickly to save their season. The league is so tight in the middle area that you could easily make the top six, but you can also easily be in the bottom six. You could get fourth place and get a Europa Conference League spot but it is now very intriguing as to what happens.

“So many teams are of a similar standard but you’d think the likes of Aberdeen and Hibernian, who have not had great seasons given the money they’ve spent, want to kick on. Hibs with the result today will hope to do that, while Aberdeen need to get someone in quickly and someone who can get this squad performing better.

“They go back to Pittodrie on Wednesday evening and the home fans will demand a response.”