Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin hails Jesper Karlsson in draw with Motherwell

Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin heaped praise on goalscorer Jesper Karlsson after a 1-1 draw with Motherwell saw his side make steps forward following their horror start to the William Hill Premiership.

Karlsson struck from 25 yards to break the deadlock in the 61st minute, but the visitors quickly struck back with Elijah Just turning home Callum Slattery’s clever corner just three minutes later.

Thelin said: “With the ball, Motherwell are a good team with how they build up through central areas.

“In the first half we went wrong with the pressing and sometimes the opponent can do really good things. We wanted to be more ready for interceptions and transitions.

“The good thing with the team now is they don’t stress and are able to correct things in the game.

“The second half was better, the last four weeks we have grown into games, we’re more stable in our defence. The team is growing, maybe not fast enough for everyone, and we have to improve how we attack now.

“Jesper has this ability to find his team-mates and from set-plays, and of course when he gets the opportunity to shoot he is always dangerous.”

Motherwell boss Jens Berthel Askou conceded a draw was a fair result.

He said: “When you look at the statistics, the draw is fair. We tried to dominate and drive the game forward from start to finish. We were in full control for almost the entire game.

“We lost control in a moment where we probably got a little bit overconfident because we felt so on top, but we also have to praise Jesper Karlsson for producing a great strike.

“We scored a wonderful goal but with all the dominance and control, we are disappointed that we weren’t able to produce more big chances and moments where we could have tipped the game into our hands.”