Aberdeen and Hibernian will both be looking to bounce back from Scottish Cup semi-final defeats when they meet at Pittodrie on Friday.
The two sides are front runners in vying it out for ‘best of the rest’ this season, although currently they’re keeping in touch with at least one of the Old Firm.
Aberdeen could go level on points with second place Celtic for the majority of the weekend as the Parkhead outfit don’t play Motherwell at Fir Park till Sunday.
Questions remain over the squad available to McInnes for the match on Friday, with Jonny Hayes missing out for the first time this season against Celtic last weekend and Marley Watkins limping off with a suspected hamstring injury.
McInnes also has to decide what he’s going to do with his forward line after the returning Sam Cosgrove made a surprise start against the Hoops having not completed a full game this season.
Further articles:
-Aberdeen lose 2-0 to Celtic in delayed Scottish Cup semi-final: Reaction
-Tribute to former Dons boss Ebbe Skovdahl who passed away at 75 years old
-Hibs have their sting back in battle for ‘best of the rest‘
Aberdeen looking to keep up good form against one of the best away records in the league
The Dons are unbeaten in five SPL games whilst Hibs come to Pittodrie with the second best away record in the league (sixteen points from twenty-one).
Hibs will be wanting to avenge the one-nil loss they suffered against the Dons in their first league meeting this season back in August at Easter Road.
Both clubs have had better fortunes away from home with Hibs picking up sixty-five percent of their points total so far on the road, whilst Aberdeen are undefeated on their travels, with both losses (Rangers and Motherwell) coming at Pittodrie.
The Cosgrove conundrum
Sam Cosgrove is back after his knee injury sustained against Hibs in a pre-season friendly.
With Main and Cosgrove returning to fitness, McInnes is starting to find himself with an abundance of strikers, which include new additions Edmondson and Watkins along with forwards Hedges and Wright.
The Dons boss has to tread cautiously in finding the right combination up front.
In the last five games without Cosgrove, Aberdeen were averaging over two goals a game.
The two-nil defeat to Celtic on Sunday was the first time the Dons had failed to score in three weeks (0-0 draw with United away).
However Cosgrove is a goalscorer, having scored plus twenty in the two previous seasons and has an overall record of almost one in two for Aberdeen.
The question comes down to the type of football McInnes wants to play after his and chairman Dave Cormack’s calls to play attractive, expansive football in the North East.
Wright, Hedges and Watkins are mobile players who like to zip the ball along the turf whilst Cosgrove, with his six foot three inch frame, is a penalty box predator.
Can Aberdeen combine the strengths of Watkins and co’s pass and move mentality with the relentless crosses Cosgrove requires to feed his insatiable appetite for goals?
Player battle: Lewis Ferguson v Kevin Nisbet
They might well contest a few tussles on Friday night in their respective positions on the pitch.
Aberdeen midfielder Lewis Ferguson is top of the SPL goalscoring chart with eight in eleven whilst Hibs striker Nisbet is second with seven in ten.
Ferguson has become something of a penalty specialist this season, netting the decisive spot kick against Hibs when they first met at the end of August.
Ferguson also buried both penalties in the three all draw with Celtic in Aberdeen’s last league game.
It’ll be interesting to see how Nisbet reacts after missing the decisive spot kick that would have put Hibs ahead in extra-time at Hampden last Saturday.
Prediction: Aberdeen 2 – 1 Hibernian
They’re closer to the top of the goal scoring charts (joint third) and bottom for goals conceded (ninth and tenth), and they’ve also kept the second (Hibs) and third (Aberdeen) most clean sheets in the league. Both sides may tighten up after their Scottish Cup defeats, not wanting to go into the international break with two losses on the spin.
Aberdeen play Hibs in the SPL on Friday, Pittodrie, KO 19:45.
Harry Jamshid Reporter Sports Pages 