article: The 23-year-old captained Inverness Caledonian Thistle to Scottish Cup final success against Falkirk in his last game for the Highlanders before a switch to Pittodrie. Part of their reward for that victory at Hampden Park was advancement to the second round of Europa League qualifiers while Shinnie's new club had to negotiate a tricky first hurdle. However, Shinnie could not have been happier as he was desperate to experience different playing styles after being limited to domestic football at Inverness. Now he and his Dons team-mates are in Croatia preparing for their first-leg tie against HNK Rijeka having seen off Shkendija of Macedonia on away goals in the first round. Derek McInnes's men are probably underdogs against a team who are unbeaten at home in their last 12 European ties. That run includes meetings with Stuttgart, Real Betis, Standard Leige, Lyon, Feyenoord and current Europa League winners Sevilla but Shinnie is undaunted by that record. He is determined to extend his stay in continental competition and hopes Caley Thistle can do likewise now they have finally made it as well. "I loved every minute of both matches in the last round. It was my first time ever playing football in a foreign country," he explained. "Inverness never went away during pre-season and I had never played in a European tie before [facing Shkendija]. "It was brilliant to finally experience what that was all about. I also got a thrill out of the return match at Pittodrie. It was my first game there for the club, so it meant a lot." Shinnie excelled in midfield as Niall McGinn scored the decisive away goal in Skopje. That 1-1 draw was followed by a hard-fought goalless return leg at Pittodrie with Shinnie once again a stand-out but in his more regular left-back berth. Only McInnes knows where Shinnie will feature in the Stadion Kantrida on Thursday but the player himself is happy wherever that turns out to be. "People often ask me where I prefer to play but I'm happy to go in wherever my manager feels is best for the team," he said. "I genuinely love playing in midfield as much as I do at left-back and if I was asked to play in another position for Aberdeen I would be happy to give that a go too. "I'm content as long as the manager feels I'm good enough to be put out on the pitch. "It's then up to me to go out and perform as best as I can to make sure he keeps picking me." Only Mark Reynolds, recovering from shoulder surgery, was missing from the travelling party that left a dull and drizzly Aberdeen for sunny Croatia. The temperature was 36C on arrival in Rijeka and it's not expected to be much cooler at kick-off time, which McInnes admits puts extra demands on the players. Despite that, the Aberdeen manager is confident they can still make it unlucky 13 for a team that have reached the group stages of the competition for the last two years. "We always aim to
summary: A summer move may have caused Graeme Shinnie to enter the Europa League qualifiers at an earlier stage but the Aberdeen player insists it has only enhanced his first foray into continental competition.