Pape Habib Gueye bags brace to help Aberdeen beat Motherwell

Pape Habib Gueye was at the double as Aberdeen overcame Motherwell 2-1 to maintain their 100% record in the Scottish Premiership.

The Senegalese gave the Dons the lead with a stunning solo strike in the first half and was on hand to head home his fifth of the season to double the lead with 10 minutes remaining.

The points looked secure but a late strike from Motherwell substitute Moses Ebiye led to a nervy ending for the 17,155 inside Pittodrie.

Jimmy Thelin’s side were missing captain Graeme Shinnie through illness but handed first starts to Croatian midfielder Ante Palaversa and on-loan striker Kevin Nisbet, who netted the winner against Ross County last time out.

Having won their last three, Motherwell named an unchanged starting XI but survived an early scare as Topi Keskinen’s low cross got caught under the body of Liam Gordon, prompting a VAR check for handball which was not given.

Keskinen was involved again as Nisbet held the ball up for him and he in turn played in Jamie McGrath, who dragged his shot inches wide of the far post.

Motherwell’s first chance came as Aberdeen failed to clear their lines from a Stephen O’Donnell throw but Andy Halliday’s effort from the edge of the box went wide.

Midway through the first half, tempers threatened to spill over following a tug on McGrath in the midfield, the resultant melee ending in yellow cards for Aberdeen’s Sivert Heltne Nilsen and Motherwell pair O’Donnell and Davor Zdravkovski.

The deadlock was broken after 27 minutes – and in some style.

Aberdeen broke quickly on the counter, with Gueye picking the ball up inside his own half and bursting away down the left before cutting inside onto his right foot and firing a low strike just inside the left-hand upright.

The home side continued to poke and prod at the Motherwell defence, though it would be into the second half before they came close again with a Slobodan Rubezic header going wide and left-back Ewan Wilson doing well to block a low effort from Keskinen.

Motherwell made a triple change just before the hour and within a minute two of the incomers had linked up for what should have been an equaliser.

Marvin Kaleta clipped a cross in from the right channel and Tony Watt met it on the six-yard line but could only direct his flying header straight at Dimitar Mitov, who was able to block.

Debutant Palaversa was impressive in midfield for the home side and came close to capping his performance with a goal, keeper Aston Oxborough pushing his 25-yard drive wide after a McGrath free-kick.

Motherwell were coming into the game as an attacking threat now and Jair Tavares flashed a shot wide before another effort from the same player was blocked.

As they upped the ante, Mitov had to be alert to hold a 30-yard drive from Liam Gordon but Gueye’s second seemed to put the game beyond doubt.

The Dons worked the ball into the box well and Oxborough must have thought he had done enough when he spread himself to block from Nicky Devlin. But rather than clear the crossbar, the ball remained in play and Gueye followed in to head home from close range.

The game looked won for the home side but there was a late consolation for Motherwell as Ebiye sneaked in at the back post to tap home Watt’s low drive.

They could have snatched an unlikely point in stoppage time as Mitov threw himself across the goal to turn a powerful Gordon header wide of the post.