Strasbourg are not in the best of form domestically, dropping to eighth place in Ligue 1 after one win in their last five games.
But Liam Rosenior’s team have lived up to their billing among the Conference League favourites and lie joint top after three wins and a draw, with Thelin recognising they are “a good team”.
Aberdeen are 33rd out of the 36 teams in the competition, but their manager says they “can dream big” after going unbeaten in six games.
“That is what I think the players have grown into a little bit – sometimes the game maybe isn’t exactly what we want, but they can stay in the game and still get the chance to win the game,” he said. “The team is growing.
“We have played against really good opponents who are doing well in the league and who have done well in the league phase now. There have been some tough challenges.”
Former Hull City defender and manager Rosenior revealed “this is a big thing for me” to bring his side to a stadium where “my hero in life”, Sir Alex Ferguson, led Aberdeen to domestic and European glory.
“I was Manchester United fan from birth, so I walk up the stairs and I see all of the pictures at this stadium, it gives me goosebumps to be a manager here myself, so it is a big game for me just in terms of that,” he said of the former Old Trafford boss.
Describing Aberdeen as “a huge club historically”, Rosenior also pointed out that, being English, he knows about a number of the hosts’ players and added: “In terms of on the pitch, they are very structured.
“I love the way Jimmy tries to get the team to play. They play with energy, they try to play positive attacking football.”
