SHOULD Aberdeen get past the relatively unknown Siroki Brijeg of Bosnian there won’t be an open-top bus parade down the city’s Union Street.

That would be reserved for if the team manage to negotiate past three rounds and reach the Europa League group stages.

Okay, perhaps that’s over the top, but given how this month has gone so far for Scottish football when new levels of humiliation were reached on the continent, if one our clubs aside from Celtic were to go on anything which could be described as a run, it will warrant celebrating.

Aberdeen have, it must be said, been more unfortunate than anything else under Derek McInnes when it has come to Europe. They have been drawn against teams with far greater resources, the ball hasn’t bounced their way at vital times as well. However, to excuse them completely would also be wrong.

In saying all that, there is a quiet confidence at Pittodrie at the moment. True, the squad is different, but it remains strong and familiar enough.

If Aberdeen are going to make a decent fist of the Europa League then now is the time.

“There is a lot of respect to be gained here and we want to be among the better clubs in Europe, the teams people instantly know when a draw is made as there is tradition and respect there,” said McInnes.

“We want to get amongst that, but we have to deal with a good team first. We hope to do it confidently, but there are no guarantees and we have to turn up and deliver. One good performance is not enough, we must deliver in both legs.

“This is top of my priorities as it’s the only competition we are in. We’re not going to win the Europa League, but we can win cups domestically and compete in the league, and I want us to compete in Europe.

“Playing a couple of rounds in Europe before being knocked out is not enough. We want to be among the big teams this season. Against Almaty and Maribor, we’ve suffered a hard-luck story and we don’t want to go through that again.

“We have to find a way to win those games and get into the group stages, but first of all we have to negotiate this tie. I want to do better than we have done in previous years.

“Like any cup competition, you play better teams as you go along and whoever wins this tie will face a tougher opponent, but I just want us to mix it with the best and there are plenty of them in this competition.”

The big names which await in the third round include AC Milan, Everton, Zenit St Petersburg, Athletic Bilbao, Galatasaray and Marseille. Who wouldn’t want a piece of that?

While McInnes was fulfilling his media duties in the early afternoon, the club were pushing through the deal to sign Gary Mackay-Steven of Celtic and Motherwell striker Louis Moult is still on the radar. There is work still to be done.

So, McInnes was spinning plates what with recruitment and getting his team ready for a big European game.

“We’ve enquiries for a few different areas of the team and I’m a bit frustrated we haven’t been able to land anything before the deadline,” said the Aberdeen manager. “A few things have transpired against us and by and large the work’s been good but in an ideal world we’d have had a couple in.

So, what are Siroki all about? They will be good enough to beat Aberdeen, even if that doesn’t mean they are a better side than their Scottish opponents.

“I know you’d expect me to say this but I’ve genuinely been really impressed by them,” said McInnes. “I’ve been concentrating on them and I feel as though I’ve a good handle on them. They’ve good pace in the wide areas both at full-back and on the wings.

“They’re a team that’s happy when they don’t have the ball, they’re confident in their defending.

“They don’t score a lot of goals, but they didn’t give up too many opportunities against Ordabasy.

“They weren’t favourites in the last round, but based on the first leg I thought Siroki would do enough to get through and they were quite comfortable in the away leg. They’ve good size at centre-forward in [Ivan] Krstanovic and the two wide players join in. They look a very well-coached and well-managed team.”

McInnes spoke of wanting the game played in a British style and that while the tie could be lost tonight, it would not be won unless something extraordinary happens.

Aberdeen have impressed year after year under their manager. The next step for this unit would be to make as big a mark as the club can away from Scotland.

“I like the tactical element of the European stage,” said McInnes. “While it is a wee bit more possession-based tactically than you get domestically, I feel there is still a need for us to play at a tempo that suits us and to try and get after the opposition and play in a manner which maybe they are not used to in their own domestic league.”

“The supporters will see the name and because they don’t recognise it they could possibly be complacent and believe we will dispatch them, but when you look closely at the level of player they have there are internationals there and we can see they are a capable team.

“It is a tie I want us to win and I expect us to go through, but we have to play well and they won’t give us the tie. I can understand the fans want to get through the rounds and expect it but that’s where we are as a club now.”