Derek McInnes is confident defender Ash Taylor can cope with the pressure of playing against champions Celtic at Parkhead tomorrow.
The former Tranmere Rovers player will partner Mark Reynolds in the heart of the Dons defence tomorrow with captain Russell Anderson ruled out for the rest of the month after knee surgery.
Celtic have won 18 consecutive home league matches against the Dons and another difficult afternoon for the Aberdeen defence is expected.
It will be Taylor’s first experience of Parkhead but McInnes is confident the 24-year-old is up to the task.
He said: “Ash might have played in some cup games down the road against big teams, I am sure he will have played in enough games to make sure he will be ready for it.
“Ash is in a good place at the minute. He is training well and feeling the confidence of having played.
“I am confident he, like the rest of the team, won’t be fazed by the game. And it would be wrong to say Ash has his chance just because of Russell’s injury.
“He was excellent against Partick Thistle and in the games he has played he has shown enough for us to see what he is capable of.
“He has the opportunity to build on a couple of strong performances.
“For any new player coming in, he wants to prove himself to the support and his team-mates and he is working towards that.”
The Hoops have recently bolstered their attacking options by signing Serbian international Stefan Scepovic and taking Swede John Guidetti on loan from Manchester City.
But McInnes reckons Wirral-born Taylor, a former Wales under-21 international, will be up to the challenge whoever he is up against.
He said: “He is a very good talker for somebody so young. He is a very good organiser, brings a real presence and makes good use of the ball, but he is there to defend first and foremost.
“We are not the biggest of teams so Ash gives us that bit of bulk and presence and for someone so young, he has played a lot of games.
“We felt central defence was a position that we needed to strengthen. You are never too sure with Russell’s history with injuries. He managed to play a brilliant number of games for us last year but we just felt we needed another centre back.”