Kenny McLean double earns Aberdeen victory at Caley Thistle
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A KENNY McLean brace earned Aberdeen a deserved 3-1 win over Caley Thistle.
Lonsana Doumbouya gave the hosts the lead before two goals in five minutes from Kenny McLean and Adam Rooney put Aberdeen in front.
Inverness did push men forward in the second half in hope of finding an equaliser but failed to trouble Aberdeen goalkeeper Joe Lewis, with McLean providing the exclamation point as stoppage-time loomed.
The hosts made three changes from the side that lost 3-0 to Celtic, with Lewis Horner, Greg Tansey and Liam Polworth replaced by Carl Tremarco, Aaron Doran and Larnell Cole. The Dons were unchanged after beating Partick Thistle 2-1 a fortnight ago.
Aberdeen started the brighter, Kenny McLean testing Owain Fon Williams from 20 yards and James Maddison, intercepting a Ross Draper pass, putting too much weight on his ball for Jayden Stockley.
Maddison fizzed a shot towards Inverness' goal that Fon Williams got down quickly to parry and it appeared Aberdeen would be the team most likely to open the scoring.
However, Doumbouya, who received his first international cap for Guinea during the international break, continued his recent hot streak with his fifth goal in eight games. Draper lifted the ball into the Dons box and Doumbouya stooped in front of his man to glance a header beyond Lewis.
It took 13 minutes for the Dons to respond and it came from a dubious free-kick, given that Doran's challenge on Maddison looked soft. McLean made the most of the decision, dipping his shot over the wall into the bottom corner.
Aberdeen had come to life and turned the game around with a second goal in five minutes. Jonny Hayes tore forward, drifting past several challenges, before his run was brought to an end in the box by Gary Warren. Former Caley Jag Rooney made no mistake from the spot, beating Fon Williams into the bottom-left corner.
McLean, outwith Maddison, was the visitors' most dangerous player, regularly finding pockets of space and making room for shots. A 30-yarder just before the break had Fon Williams scrambling to turn round the post.
The home side were not able to contain Maddison as he continued to meander his way through their lines. He teed up Inverness' Scottish Cup-winning captain Graeme Shinnie, who should have done better than shooting straight at Fon Williams.
Shinnie was involved in a later flashpoint, when he appeared to leave a foot in on Brad Mckay, which resulted in the Inverness defender being stretchered off.
Maddison hit the post with a free-kick and Draper saw a deflected effort trickle agonisingly wide, before McLean slid in his second in the 89th minute.
CALEY THISTLE: Fon Williams; Mckay (Horner, 77), Meekings, Warren, Tremarco, Draper, Vigurs, Doran, Cole (Mulraney, 70), King (Fisher, 85), Doumbouya. Subs unused: Esson, Sutherland, Boden. Booked: Vigurs.
ABERDEEN: Lewis; Logan, O'Connor, Considine, Shinnie (Reynolds, 90), Jack, McLean, Stockley (McGinn, 75), Maddison (Taylor, 75), Hayes. Subs unused: Alexander, Pawlett, Morris, Storey. Booked: Maddison.
Attendance: 4867.
Referee: K Clancy.
