Dante Polvara is two years into his stay with Scottish Premiership side Aberdeen and despite a slow start to life abroad, the American midfielder has grown into a key player for the squad this season.
Polvara has made 31 combined appearances for Neil Warnock’s squad this season, logging just under 1,900 minutes of playing time. After making just 11 appearances over his first two seasons in Scotland, the former Mac Hermann trophy winner has taken a major step in his overall development at Aberdeen.
Polvara praised patience for helping help get to where he is today.
“I think I have worked hard ever since I’ve signed for the club,” Polvara told SBI. “Sure it’s taken a bit of time, but it’s all part of the game, sometimes you have to be patient and just focus on improving and being mentally ready every day. This season for the club hasn’t gone the way that a lot of us would’ve liked, which has clouded a bit of things, but overall I think we have a good group here and are eager to move upward.”
Polvara made nine appearances for Aberdeen last season before spending time on loan with eventual USL Championship Finalists, Charleston Battery. The 23-year-old enjoyed his time back in the United States, scoring one goal and registering two assists in 18 appearances for Charleston.
Most importantly, Polvara was able to get on the field regularly, gel with familiar faces in the squad, and be closer to his family and friends.
“I needed to go find confidence and I am thankful for Aberdeen to allow me the opportunity to do that at Charleston,” Polvara said. I hadn’t really fit into the Aberdeen squad so being able to jump into a competitive Charleston squad certainly helped me with getting back to my best. I knew Derek Dodson from my time at Georgetown and A.J. Paterson from my days with NYCFC so that was a good way to get some chemistry in the squad. I also had a great coach in Ben Pirmann.
“It was a busy season and basically I had my last match with them on a Friday before joining Aberdeen for preseason camp that next Monday in Portugal,” Polvara added. “I can’t thank Charleston enough for taking the chance on me and for allowing me to feature for them. It definitely gave me a boost before starting the new season with Aberdeen.”
The New York-born midfielder has delivered some key moments this season for Aberdeen across all competitions. He featured in five of Aberdeen’s UEFA Conference League matches, scoring goals against both Eintracht Frankfurt and PAOK Salonika.
Polvara also assisted on the winning goal for Aberdeen in its Scottish League Cup semifinal triumph over Hibernian, in addition to contributing in recent FA Cup wins over Clyde FC and Bonnyrigg. The production has certainly come for Polvara, who has set new career-highs in both categories.
“The European matches were unbelievable and I was happy to play a part in them,” Polvara said. “Aberdeen has plenty of history from years’ past in Europe and that is where we want this team to be going forward. Being able to play in Germany, Greece and Finland were awesome experiences and they are moments that I will never forget.
“Growing up it’s been about playing in Europe and I think that is what every young kid dreams about doing,” Polvara added. “Being able to produce in front of our fans, both home and away, were unforgettable moments. Although we would’ve liked to stay in Europe a little bit longer this season, it was a good step for the club to get back there.”
Polvara is one of two American players currently in the Scottish Premiership, with Celtic’s Cameron Carter-Vickers also in the top-flight. However, former American players such as James Sands, Malik Tillman, Tim Weah, and Christian Ramirez have also featured in the SPFL over recent time.
Both Sands and Ramirez have featured alongside Polvara at different stages of their careers to date and were praised by the young midfielder for their respective impacts on his life.
“James and I grew up together at NYCFC and although we both played for different clubs, we always tried to stay in touch in Scotland,” Polvara said. “As an American player abroad, there are times when you do get lonely so having that friendship certainly helps and his friendship has been important to me. He was on the bench when I made my Aberdeen debut so it was pretty cool to connect with him in his time here.
“Christian Ramirez was also here when I started and he was a big reason for why I came here,
Polvara said. “I called him with a lot of questions before I signed and he definitely helped me out a lot. He is a great guy and a top professional and I enjoyed our time together even if it was a short one.”
With the 2024 Copa America and 2026 FIFA World Cup coming to American soil, there is added excitement for every player to get into the U.S. men’s national team’s plans. Polvara has yet to feature for the United States, but very well could be on the radar after a breakout campaign for Aberdeen.
Whether or not Polvara is able to force his way into Gregg Berhalter’s plans remains to be seen, but for now he’s focused on controlling what only he can control.
“I haven’t been in contact with U.S. Soccer yet, but of course it’s a dream to play in a World Cup, especially on home soil,” Polvara said. “I think it’s awesome to see the U.S. continuing to climb up the ranks and I think seeing them succeed and do well is motivation for a lot of players to want to get there.
“I am really looking forward to the years coming up and I will do my best to put my name in the hat,” he added. “Whatever happens will happen, for me I can just continue to try and get better every day.”
Aberdeen’s worrying form during the second half of the season will be Polvara’s main priority over the next few months. Longtime manager Neil Warnock was hired in early-February as Barry Robson’s replacement, bringing more than 40 years of experience to the Aberdeen sidelines.
However, the Dons are five points back of the final spot for the SPFL Championship Group and overall have only won one league match in 2024. Polvara is ready to do whatever he can to help Aberdeen snap out of its funk and also potentially lift a trophy by season’s end.
“We have six league matches left before the table is split into the two groups, so it’s really crucial for us to start delivering some good results,” Polvara said. “The boys are working hard and we have a lot of quality in the squad, so it really comes down to figuring out what we need to fix. We also have a FA Cup quarterfinal at home to look forward to so I think we will be hungry for it after reaching the League Cup Final already this season.
“There’s not much room for error at this stage of the season, but sometimes having your back against the wall brings out the best in you.”
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