Aberdeen return to competitive action tonight when they take on Finnish outfit RoPS Rovaniemi at Pittodrie.
The Dons are favourites for this tie and should progress comfortably into the Europa League second qualifying round.
McInnes’ side will take to the pitch for their first competitive bout tonight. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
A lack of match sharpness may plague some of Derek McInnes’ squad but it shouldn’t be too much of a factor. They’ll be captained by Joe Lewis, who was recently confirmed as the new Red Army skipper.
Here’s our prediction for who McInnes will go for against the Finnish side.
The starting XI
In goals will obviously be Lewis. Shay Logan has played plenty of pre-season minutes so he’ll likely be lining up at right-back, with new signing Greg Leigh the only real choice for the full-back role on the opposite side. He’ll start, despite picking up an ankle knock last week, as reported by the Evening Express.
Leigh will make it. (Photo by VI Images via Getty Images)
In central defence will be Scott McKenna and he’ll be partnered with Mikey Devlin.
Midfield is where thing get interesting. McInnes has opted for a couple of formations during pre-season, sometimes opting for a midfield two with two strikers or sometimes it’s three midfielders and one forward.
Given the lack of midfield depth, I think it’ll be Lewis Ferguson and youngster Dean Campbell in a midfield two. Craig Bryson hasn’t featured in pre-season, so he is more likely to make an appearance from the bench.
Aberdeen new boy Bryson shouldn’t be risked. against RoPS. (Photo by Andrew Kearns – CameraSport via Getty Images)
Connor McLennan will start on the left wing. Right wing is a tricky position to predict too, with Niall McGinn probably not ready for a start yet. With that in mind, I think Ryan Hedges will be in line for a debut on the right.
He was rested for the recent friendly against Inverness, but Sam Cosgrove will start against RoPS. Partnering him will be marmite summer signing Curtis Main, who’ll likely do all the leg work for his new striker partner.
Here’s our full predicted XI in list form.