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Andy Considine hopes to end his career with Aberdeen after signing new deal

by Danny Law
17/12/2020, 11:00 am
© SNS GroupAndy Considine at full time during the William Hill Scottish Cup quarter-final win against St. Mirren on February 29, 2020 in Paisley.
Andy Considine at full time during the William Hill Scottish Cup quarter-final win against St. Mirren on February 29, 2020 in Paisley.

Defender Andy Considine hopes he can stay at Aberdeen beyond his new deal as his love for the club will never die.

The Scotland international has penned a one-year contract extension tying him to the club until summer 2022.

However, Pittodrie great Considine, 33, wants to play for the club beyond that.

Considine recently entered the club’s all-time top-five appearances list and has played 537 times for the Reds.

Only club legends Willie Miller, Alex McLeish, Bobby Clark and Stewart McKimmie have played more times.

Considine insists extending his time at Aberdeen is the “icing on the cake” of a memorable year where he broke into the Scotland national squad.

The defender made his Scotland debut in October and has earned three caps.

He said: “My love for the game and this club will never die and I’m just very lucky.

“I feel as fit as ever and having that other year will take me up to 35, which sounds scary, but at the same time – if I can stay injury free – there is no reason why I can’t play beyond that and hopefully it is here.

“I don’t want to hang up the boots at any point in the near future and I can only hope it is with Aberdeen.

“I’ve had to put in a lot of hard work to play at the top level for this length of time and it just shows if you apply yourself you can play for a long time.

“I’ve seen so many players come through the door and had umpteen injuries.

“Before you know it their contract is cancelled and they are struggling to find a team.

“Football can be a cruel game and you just keep your head down, be as humble as you can and give everything you have.

“It sounds so simple.

“Talent only gets you so far in life. If you have the hunger and desire to go and try to be the best you can be, you give yourself every chance.”

Considine had a clause written into his contract that would trigger an extra year if he reached a certain amount of games.

The defender was on course to meet that appearance figure.

However, the Dons opted to move to sign the influential stopper up now on the extended deal before that clause was met.

It tops a fantastic year for Considine.

He said: “It’s been an incredible year.

“First and foremost I’m delighted to sign on for another year at Aberdeen and it is the icing on the cake after a really good year.

“I’ve played for my country, which was massive for myself and my family, and to finish the year off with adding another year to my contract is fantastic.”

Andy Considine, of Aberdeen, in action for Scotland.

Despite the longevity of his Dons career, Considine has only secured one trophy – the League Cup in 2014. That remains a source of frustration to the defender who aims to land more silverware – starting with the Scottish Cup this season.

He said: “Here’s hoping 2021 can be even better..

“I would love to add to the League Cup.

“We are out of the League Cup this year, which is disappointing, but to have a good Scottish Cup run to get something that would be ideal.”

Considine is also determined to force his way into Scotland manager Steve Clarke’s squad for the World Cup qualifiers in March to keep alive his dream of playing at Euro 2022 next year.

He said: “I just hoped that one day I would get a call up and to get that call was very special to say the least. It brought a real tear to my eye.

“My main aim is to play as well and consistently here, so that I can be involved in March and even better in the summer.”

Now in his 18th season in the first team, Considine was named AFC Player of the Year for the third time in his career in May.

© SNS Group
Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes embraces Andy Considine after his 2017 Celtic Park winner.

Boss Derek McInnes praised the defender and is confident the 33-year-old can continue to be a key player for seasons to come at Aberdeen.

McInnes said: “Having worked with Andy for eight years, I know his dedicated approach will enable him to amass even more appearances for club and his contract extension is richly deserved.

“It’s very rare in the modern game for a player to not only remain at the one club for the majority of his career, but to also play that many games for one club.

“I know Andy feels he has much more to achieve at Aberdeen and there is no reason why he can’t continue being a prominent player for us in the next couple of seasons.”