Chris Sutton instantly reacts to Aberdeen next manager news after unexpected development

Mar 11, 2026 - 12:30

Aberdeen are set to open formal talks to appoint St Mirren’s Stephen Robinson to take over as their next manager.

The Scottish Premiership club have been hunting for Jimmy Thelin’s permanent replacement since early January.

Since then, Peter Leven has taken charge in a caretaker capacity. However, this has gone dreadfully, with the manager winning just three of his 12 games in charge, and was trashed 3-0 by Dunfermline Athletic in the Scottish Cup on the weekend.

Now, with Aberdeen fans restless, the club is looking to appoint St Mirren manager Robinson, with Chris Sutton quick to react.

Aberdeen FC has this morning been officially given permission to enter formal talks with St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson regarding the vacant managerial position.

The Club will provide an update in due course. pic.twitter.com/k51hShFDYx— Aberdeen FC (@AberdeenFC) March 11, 2026

Chris Sutton: Aberdeen have hit the panic button

On 11 March, Aberdeen confirmed via X that they had been given permission to speak to Robinson to become their next manager.

The St Mirren boss guided his club to the Premier Sports Cup trophy in December in a shock victory over Celtic.

However, their form has since dipped, with the Buddies losing four of their past five Scottish Premiership matches, and sit just three points above the relegation playoff zone.

While St Mirren did progress to the Scottish Cup semi-finals on the weekend, Robinson has been under pressure in recent weeks.

Therefore, for Aberdeen to see the manager as their saviour is viewed as a highly unexpected development.

Aberdeen hit the panic button…— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) March 11, 2026

Sutton was one of the first to react to the news, and he posted on X on 11 March: “Aberdeen hit the panic button…”

Stephen Robinson’s managerial career explained

Robinson started his managerial career at Oldham Athletic, which was far from successful, winning just seven of 33 matches.

From here, he quickly went to Motherwell, where he enjoyed far more success.

The 51-year-old guided the Steelmen to both the Scottish Cup and League Cup finals in the 2017-18 campaign. However, he was unable to win either trophy.

After three years at Motherwell, he resigned in 2020 before moving to Morecambe in 2021.

St. Mirren have done it! 🏆

The full-time scenes as the Buddies defeated Celtic to claim the #PremierSportsCup 🏁 pic.twitter.com/2V2tckjIX7— Premier Sports (@PremSportsTV) December 14, 2025

Back in England, he struggled once more, winning just 10 of his 40 matches in charge.

As a result, he returned to Scotland yet again in 2022 and took over at St Mirren.

His time at the Buddies has been highly successful to date, with his Premier Sports Cup trophy being the key highlight.

In every one of his full campaigns to date at St Mirren, he has guided the club to a top-half finish. However, this is now impossible to achieve this season.