Ante Palaversa, Topi Keskinen, Vicente Besuijen and Kevin Nisbet all scored in the second half as Aberdeen beat Dundee 4-1 at Pittodrie to go top of the Scottish Premiership.
Simon Murray missed a penalty for the visitors late in the first half, but partially made up for it with a header midway through the second half to make it 2-1.
But Besuijen scored just a minute later to restore Aberdeen’s two-goal advantage and Nisbet added a fourth late on to ensure Jimmy Thelin’s side’s home record remained at 100%.
The win moves Aberdeen three points clear of Celtic at the summit and 12 points ahead of third-placed Rangers, with the two Glasgow sides due to play on Sunday afternoon.
How Aberdeen beat Dundee
Aberdeen made two changes from the side that lost 6-0 to Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final. Sivert Heltne Nilsen and Jamie McGrath were eliminated and replaced by Palaversa and Leighton Clarkson.
Dundee also made two switches following their win over Kilmarnock. Jordan McGhee and Josh Mulligan made the starting lineup, replacing Ethan Ingram and Antonio Portales.
The home side started promisingly. Jack MacKenzie’s shot from distance flew high over the crossbar and Oluwaseun Adewumi came close at the other end after being caught by Lyall Cameron’s search ball.
Aberdeen responded and Duk’s attempt from a tight angle was blocked by Jon McCracken, while another drilled shot from the same player was similarly repelled.
Dundee continued to threaten on the break and from another Cameron pass, Murray could only fire a shot into the goalkeeper’s arms.
The visitors then squandered a golden opportunity to take the lead just before half-time. Gavin Molloy attempted to push the ball away for a goal kick but ended up bringing down Murray in the process. The striker was awarded a direct penalty, but Dimitar Mitov dived to his left to save it.
Aberdeen had one last chance towards the end of a frenzied first half, but again McCracken was equal to Keskinen’s curling shot.
The home team succeeded in breaking through in the 7th minute of the second half. Clarkson’s corner was only half cleared and Palaversa fired a shot past McCracken.
Aberdeen then scored their second goal in the 57th minute after Duck hit the post with a header. Nicky Devlin’s throw-in was taken by Sokler and after Clark Robertson mangled an attempted clearance, Keskinen fired a low effort into the far corner.
Dundee were given a lifeline with 20 minutes remaining when Murray atoned for his earlier penalty miss by heading Scott Tiffoney’s cross past Mitov.
However, any hope of a comeback disappeared in 60 seconds. Nisbet, who had just been on the pitch, took a quick free kick which fellow substitute Besuijen finished off in a split second.
Nisbet scored his side’s fourth in added time, his shot deflected by Ryan Astley on its way past McCracken.
