Derek McInnes and Peter Pawlett on RedTV
“Josh has a shoulder problem. He landed badly at training on Monday. As its stands he is out for the weekend. Jonny had a head knock at the game on Tuesday. He got out of hospital yesterday and I spoke with him. He is ok but because there was a concussion he will be out for the weekend. Willo is getting a scan this morning.
“We have 90 minutes to get through on Saturday. We want to make sure it is a winning performance and then we have two weeks to regroup before the next game. Hopefully we would have Josh, Jonny and Barry Robson back after the International break.
“It is a long two weeks if don’t you get the win before it. You can enjoy the two weeks a bit more if you do get a result. I think it will be a tight game. St Johnstone very rarely lose by that margin (their results against Dundee Utd last week). I think everyone was shocked by the result last week. I think it was a one off. They are a very difficult opponent. They are very resolute in what they do. They are always a committed and well organised side. I obviously know a lot of their players.
“We need to get more bodies into the box. Against Hearts and Alloa we created openings but did not score. We have to get more shots on goal, we have to get into better areas and as I say we have to get more bodies into the box. We have to force the issue more. We had more than enough corners the other night and although the delivery was good, and we won the first header, we did not convert anything. So we have to do more from open play and set-pieces.”
“We need our supporters on Saturday. The boys have run for 120 minutes on Tuesday and been put through the mill. There are also boys in the squad who have not had a lot of minutes so far so that is a concern as well. I think together we need a big effort. The players will be doing their bit. The players share the frustrations of the fans that we are not converting more of our possession into goals. That is what we are here to do, score goals and win games.”
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“I was at St Johnstone last season and I enjoyed my time there, they’re a great bunch of lads and I am sure it will be a difficult game this weekend. Stevie May is in great form for them so we’ll need to watch him. They’ve got a decent set up at the Club, they’re not as big as Aberdeen in terms of fan base, but the things they believe in, the modern football techniques they employ mean they are a strong club.
“Last weekend we thought to ourselves if we win here we could go top of the league and that was disappointing. If we go in the break with 9 points we’ll be up there and with the cup win as well that will be a good start to the season.
“We’ve watched highlights of all our games and we’ve dominated games but I do think we need to convert more chances. We do a lot of work in training and our finishing has been really good, the strikers have been in form but it’s just not happening for us at the moment. If we continue to dominate games it will eventually click for us. I think confidence is massive in football. If we’re confident in ourselves, we’ll be playing and hopefully this is our season.
“I am enjoying it and that’s what you’ve got to do in football. If you’re enjoying it and your confident then I think play your best stuff. I am feeling good, feeling sharp and that’s the main thing. I love playing in the free role, getting in to little pockets in behind the striker. The manager spoke to me and he likes me in there which I am really please about. With Niall and Jonny either side of me I think we’ve got a good mix in there.
“I think I was unfortunate against Hearts. TV evidence clearly showed I was clipped. I think the way I go down doesn’t help the referee’s decision but that’s the natural way I go down. I’m not diving, it’s the way I’ve gone down even when I was a kid. I know when people look at it they might think what is he doing but at the time its natural and I am not putting anything on, it’s the speed at which I am travelling. Someone said to me can you not change the way you go down but then that would be diving. It’s difficult, especially when you’re going at such a speed to think about how you go down.”
RedTV | Peter Pawlett media conference in full please click here
