Is Paul Hartley the right man to skipper the Dons?

Will his experience tell for McGhee?

The signing of Paul Hartley by Aberdeen has the potential to be good for all parties. Hartley had expressed a desire to return home to Scotland after one year at Bristol City, which worries us but thats family living for you. Therefore, the return to the SPL is likely to be a good move for Hartley and Aberdeen definitely need some experience in their squad so it looks a shrewd move by Dons boss Mark McGhee.

There was talk of former club Hearts being interested in Hartley but for whatever reason, that move broke down and the Dons stepped in. So happy were they to land Hartley, they immediately made him club captain. At 33 and with a two year contract, this is likely to be Hartley’s last big contract and will give the player some more time at the top.

In his last season at Celtic, many felt Hartley’s legs were starting to go but if played in the right position, he is likely to be a key influence on the team. You can probably expect to see Hartley patrolling in front of the back four, reading and breaking down moves and tracking late running midfielders.

Perhaps Paul Hartley will still be able to add some of his swashbuckling box-to-box runs but they certainly won’t be as common as they used to be.

With six in and five out at Pittodrie, with one of them being captain Mark Kerr, there was a need for Aberdeen to give the armband to someone new. Some may have felt that Zander Diamond would have been given the opportunity, with the further responsibility perhaps spurring the player on to fulfilling his potential.

However, the new signing was duly made club captain and again, it makes sense. Paul Hartley is never one to shy away from a battle or confrontation but equally, he knows enough about the game to know when to walk away and shut up.

Aberdeen had an abysmal disciplinary record last season (at times unlucky, at times their own fault) and Hartley may be able to help curb some of the more youthful exuberance.

We can’t say we saw too much of Hartley at Bristol City but he always seemed to be involved in the brief highlights we caught. If his role is well defined and those around him do their share, the signing of Paul Hartley may be one of the buys of the season.

Hartley has a clean sweep of domestic trophies from his time at Celtic, as well as having a Scottish Cup medal with Hearts and a Division One title with Hibs. Add this to 25 Scotland caps and it is easy to see that Paul Hartley should know what he is doing when it comes to playing football.

It is also easy to see why Aberdeen have snapped up a player of Hartley’s experience.

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