In this weeks RedMatchday Magazine:

JOSH PARKER

… “I was born just outside London in Slough and I was a QPR fan growing up. My uncle and my granddad used to go to the games.

… “What I experienced (at QPR) and what I learned in that short period was probably more than many players experience in their whole careers.  I had about 13 managers, I was part of a team that won promotion to the Premier League, a team that had so much talent in it but also so much pressure on it.

… “I went from Sunday League to QPR when I was 16. I started doing my scholarship and then club was about to go into liquidation. After my first season, that was when the money came in. They released a lot of players and then brought in a lot of new players. They were basically trying to buy a team. The owner was Italian so they were bringing in players from Italy.

… “I realise now that as a player, you always have pressure but as a youngster, I did not deal with it correctly. Throughout your life you get little triggers that teach you things, even if you don’t realise it at the time.

…  “I am still learning the game. I have had so many ups and downs but I think this is a step in the right direction. Coming to Aberdeen, I settled in straight away. It was obviously not as big a change for me coming here as opposed to me going to Belgrade. Culturally that was quite a big change to get used to. Coming to Aberdeen is just like coming home really.

…  “When you go onto the pitch you can’t have any doubts. You can’t think my opposite number is bigger than me or stronger than me or faster than me. If you do that, it leads to mistakes. When the ball comes into your feet, you can’t be thinking negative thoughts. Football is about winning individual battles. It is a competition with your opposite number. If someone tackles me hard in a game I get up and smile.

… “You win or lose a game and then move onto the next one. You don’t let the previous game stick in your head whatever the result. As I say it works both ways. You can’t get too carried away if you win a game and you can’t get too down if you lose. We can’t affect the media, so we should just let them get on with it and worry about what we can affect.

… “Had we won we would then have got into the group stages of the CONCACAF qualification with countries such as the USA and Mexico. It would have been nice but it was not meant to be. Qualifying for a World Cup will always be a big task for a country of less than 100,000 people.  A more realistic aim for Antigua & Barbuda would be to start off by qualifying for the Gold Cup.”     RYAN JACK

“It’s nice to be coming back to Pittodrie after three games on the road and hopefully we will have a big crowd to help drive us on to the right result. We’ve had a lot of very close games with St Johnstone over the last couple of years and they had a good win over Dundee United last week, even though they were down to ten men, so we will give them plenty of respect as they come here. They are always a very tough team to beat.

“With the international break kicking in after this game, it’s important that we sign off with a positive performance and result.”

JOE NUTTALL “I'm really looking forward to what will be an exciting project ahead.

“Coming to Aberdeen is a big change for me but since I have been here I have really enjoyed it. I am looking forward to the challenge and hopefully everything goes to plan. I feel I have settled it quickly which is important. Everyone at the club has made me very welcome. I could not have asked any more.

“I am only 18 and leaving home was difficult but this is what I want to do. I have wanted to be a footballer all my life. You have to make sacrifices and take whatever opportunities come your way.

“I grew up in Bury which is near Manchester. I was a Manchester City fan. I started playing for them when I was seven years old so I spent 11 years with the club. When I was younger it was very exciting because you thought you had more of a chance of making it into the first team. Back then they were not the massive club they are now. But when the money came in it became a lot more difficult for younger players such as myself.”

Plus Derek McInnes, Graeme Shinnie, Sam Robertson, Richard Gordon, Chris Crighton, Golden Years, Picture This, Dave Macdermid, Time Team, AFC Former Players Interview, AFC Heritage Trust, That was the Week, talking point, European Round Up and much more!

RedMatchday Magazine is priced at £3.00 and is available from the sellers in and around the ground before the game as well the AFC Club shop. For anyone who can't make it along to Pittodrie on Saturday you can buy a copy of RedMatchday online please click here