Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes insists there is no substitute for experience as he tries to pick his players up following their Rangers mauling.
The Dons boss, below, suffered the heaviest defeat of his Pittodrie tenure on Saturday as Rangers cruised to a 5-0 win at Ibrox.
The loss of Andy Considine to gastroenteritis hours before kick-off was one experienced absence too many for the Dons who were already without Scott McKenna, Ash Taylor, Craig Bryson, Funso Ojo and James Wilson, the majority of whom would have featured.
The pain of defeat cuts deep at Pittodrie but McInnes believes the availability of the seasoned players would have made a difference.
He said: “I need my experienced players. I need those battle hardened players. Hopefully we can get Bryson and McKenna back soon. But Ojo and Taylor, Wilson and (Scott) Wright; they are going to be a bit longer.
“Up until we lost the League Cup game on penalties against Hearts, when the performance was decent but you can lose on penalties and we were disappointed with that, we had won three and drawn two despite having the injuries. But when you play against a team like Rangers who were all singing and all dancing on Saturday and came at us, I need my better players.”
Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos took advantage of the gaps in the Dons team to help lead Steven Gerrard’s side to a one-sided victory.
The Colombian was fouled for the penalty which led to the opening goal before heading home the third early in the second half and McInnes believes his influence on the game was key.
The Aberdeen manager said: “We have always tried to make sure we are strong through the middle of the park where we can turn over the ball a lot.
“But Morelos recognised the space wherever it is. We are well versed with how Morelos wants to play but when he does it as well as he did it is difficult to stop. I thought he led the line brilliantly and scored a good goal. That is the quality Rangers have.”
McInnes is in need of reinforcements but Considine is likely to be the only Dons player returning to a shellshocked squad for Saturday’s visit of Hibernian to Pittodrie.