Burnley substitute Sam Vokes struck a crucial late away goal to deny Aberdeen a famous Europa League win at Pittodrie.

The Dons led through Gary Mackay-Steven’s penalty from the 19th minute and were more than holding their own until Vokes flicked the ball over two defenders’ heads and fired into the roof of the net to make it 1-1 with 10 minutes left.

Finances suggested the game should have been a mismatch – Burnley raked in £120m for finishing seventh in the Premier League while their hosts collected £2.3m for a fourth consecutive runners-up spot in Scotland.

But Aberdeen had more than an edge in European experience, not just from their 1980s heyday when they won the European Cup Winners’ Cup and Super Cup. The Dons are used to competing in the summer months in recent years while Burnley were making their return to European competition after 51 years.

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The visitors suffered an early blow when they lost the England goalkeeper Nick Pope to a shoulder injury. The World Cup squad member dropped the ball under pressure from Sam Cosgrove before being injured in a follow-up challenge from Lewis Ferguson, which drew a foul.

Sean Dyche said: “He’s gone to hospital. At this stage it looks more serious than not serious.” His replacement, Anders Lindegaard, was soon picking the ball out of the net after the well-placed German referee Daniel Siebert spotted an illegal challenge with the arm by James Tarkowski, which left Cosgrove clutching his face. Mackay-Steven sent the Danish substitute the wrong way from the spot.

Aberdeen were pressed in for much of the rest of the half but they soaked up the pressure and looked purposeful in attack. The half-time situation could have been worse for Dyche’s side but Graeme Shinnie shot weakly at Lindegaard after robbing Ashley Westwood and driving to the edge of the box.

Aberdeen had two players in defence who were making their debuts after missing the whole of last season with knee injuries. The former Hamilton captain Michael Devlin was hugely impressive while Tommie Hoban just about emerged unscathed from a difficult night against Aaron Lennon after joining on loan from Watford on Wednesday.

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They protected Joe Lewis until the 49th minute, when the goalkeeper produced a brilliant point-blank stop from Jack Cork’s diving header before getting a crucial touch to Lennon’s driven cross. The hosts weathered a brief storm before threatening again. Cosgrove had a shot saved as a break caught Burnley wide open and Mackay-Steven forced a flying save from Lindegaard with a header from eight yards.

Shinnie dropped into a back five after Johann Berg Gudmundsson and substitute Vokes had efforts off target for Burnley and Aberdeen again came close when Niall McGinn fired just wide.

But the tie turned when Vokes brought down a knockdown eight yards out and gave the 2,000 away fans cause for celebration and optimism before next week’s second leg at Turf Moor.

The Aberdeen manager, Derek McInnes, felt his side deserved to take the lead but admitted the Clarets were well worth their equaliser for their second-half efforts.

McInnes said: “We ran out of legs a little bit. It’s nothing new. In that first game in Europe it’s difficult to sustain your energy levels. But we’re still in the game.”