Aberdeen hit good form before the international break – and boss Derek McInnes is hopeful that can continue as he provides a fitness update on the like of Leeds United loanee Ryan Edmondson and Mikey Devlin.
The Dons take on Kilmarnock at Pittodrie this afternoon. They have bounced back from three postponements due to COVID-19 protocol breaches in some style, winning four on the spin.
Now they look for a fifth consecutive win, and for the first time this season, a victory in front of supporters. 300 Dons fans will be allowed into Pittodrie as Scottish football runs test events to see how easily fans can be welcomed back.
McInnes is hoping a win can be put on display for them. Meanwhile he’s provided a fitness update, with Leeds loanee Edmondson feeling keen to return in a fortnight whilst Sam Cosgrove and defender Devlin progress.
“We are delighted that supporters are allowed back into Pittodrie, it is a step in the right direction,” said McInnes (Red TV). “It is a reward for the supporters for their perseverance and loyalty to be allowed in. It is a tough challenge for the club to sort out who can get in and who can’t.
“Hopefully, we can get through the test game with no dramas and it means that we can increase numbers as we go along. Hopefully, it is the start of getting back to some sort of normality.
“Ryan Edmondson will come back to Aberdeen next week from Leeds. We will assess how he is but the way we have been liaising with Leeds and Ryan, there’s optimism there that it’s not going to be anywhere near what we thought.
“I think it’s still a bit early until we get eyes on him and make an assessment ourselves as to how quickly we can get him back. If you listen to Ryan, he thinks he can come back in the next two weeks. We’ll see how he goes.
“We have managed to get lads back from the international break in good clean health and we have strong numbers to choose from again. The lads that were away with the Scotland U21s came back yesterday. Obviously McCrorie and Ferguson played in the game.
“Both took a few knocks but are fine and will train tomorrow. McGinn and Kennedy were away with Northern Ireland and they are both okay and Scott McKenna trained today as well. So we have no concerns over any of the lads who were away on international duty.
“Sam got a scan on Monday and got good news so he should be pushing to get back after the next international break – the start of October. And Michael Devlin will be around then as well.
“I am pleased with the way the squad has shaped up and I am pleased that we have managed to get guys out of the treatment room, and we are getting the two strikers back as well.
“It has been a good few weeks from everybody but it is important that we just settle back down, have no panic, get on with the job and try to win games of football and that has to be our focus. After four wins in a row, and it is not easy to do that, if we can go and win another one, winning starts to become a habit. We want that habit to continue.”