view from the dressing room
Andrew Considine |
“There is a good closeness about the boys. Despite the disappointment of the last two performances there is still a confidence about the place. The training has been really good, the boys look really sharp. The training this season is a lot more intense. The boys are now very fit. Every day at training everything is done at a high intensity.
“It has been an encouraging couple of months but it is really good we are now getting back to full strength. We have Barry, Willo and Russell coming back into the squad. Having that experience coming back into the side is a massive. They will help the young boys and help them through games.
“It has taken me the four games to get back to full match fitness. The last two weeks in training I have felt a lot better, more like myself. Hopefully I can continue from here and have no more injuries. It is good playing alongside Michael. He talks a lot during the game and is very comfortable on the ball and he has a good bit of pace about him. There is a good balance in the defence. You have Mark, Clark and myself who are left footed and then you have Russell, Michael and Joe who are right footed. All over the pitch we now have a good balance.
“Saturday is a massive game because of our last two results. I believe Dundee United will be one of the sides in the top half of the table. Although they started the season slowly they have looked impressive in recent weeks and are playing some good football. It will be a very tough game.
“The Dundee United games are always great occasions. There is also a good atmosphere.”
RedTV | to listen to the interview in full please click hereScott Vernon |
“It’s a game we’re definitely excited about. We’ve got to respect Dundee United as they’ve hit a bit of form recently. We realise they’ve got some good young players, like ourselves, so it should be a good show out there butobviously one that we’re desperately trying to get the three points out of. You never want to lose a game with an international break coming up and it’s something we’ve been wanting to put right for a couple of weeks now. We’re itching to get out there and put that behind us.
“It’s up to us to make sure the game isn’t too open, keep it tight and make sure it’s open for us to play and not them. We’ve been working on it all week. Training in the last couple of weeks has been going great. We’ve had the rest that we needed as well as working hard so we’re full of confidence going in to the game and we want to put the recent loss to Ross County firmly behind us.
“Dundee United have been up there the last few season, making the top six and obviously it’s a big aim of ours to be up there this season. We’ve made a decent enough start to the campaign and if we can kick on from here then we feel we can definitely do that.
“With all strikers it’s a confidence position. Strikers are under pressure to score goals and when you go a few games without scoring the pressure is suddenly on. It’s that fine line between a goal or two and all of sudden you’re in a different mind-set.
“We’re hoping it’s going to be a good atmosphere. Every time we’ve played them, either home or away, it’s been unbelievable so we’re hoping the Aberdeen fans are going to get more vocal that the Dundee United fans and that will spur us on to victory.”
RedTV | to watch the conference in full please click hereRussell Anderson |
Rusell spoke to RedMatchday magazine “It’s been a frustrating couple of weeks on a personal level, having missed a few games with injury, then picking up an ankle knock just as I was back in the squad again.
“The Ross County result was disappointing, but the international break offers a good opportunity to look at the season as whole so far now that we’ve played most of the teams in the division.
“I think overall, it’s been a good start for us under the new management. When you think how many seasons in a row we’ve ended up in the bottom half, to be up there in the top six is very definitely a step in the right direction.
“On top of that, we’ve scored more goals and generally looked more threatening going forward, and we’ve progressed through two rounds of the League Cup, with a big game against Motherwell to look forward to in that competition.
“We’ve achieved all of that despite having our share of injury problems.
“The fact that we’ve had a two week break from games has been pretty helpful I think, because it’s helped a few of the boys get some good work in on the training pitch and hopefully when we get out on the pitch today, there will be a bigger number of players for the manager to choose from.
“It’s always a big game when we take on Dundee United and that’s very much the case on Saturday given that they are breathing down our necks in the league, just a point behind us. There are a few boys in our changing room who have connections to United as well, so that just adds a little more spice to the occasion.”
