Aberdeen boss Jim Goodwin is ready to hit the ‘reset button’ as he bids to mount a late push for a top six place.
The Dons have fallen four points behind the top half of the table following Saturday’s 1-0 defeat by Rangers at Ibrox.
The loss leaves Aberdeen in 10th place with three games remaining to secure their place and Goodwin is targeting a maximum return from the remaining matches.
He said: “We’ve got three huge games coming up now.
“We can’t do anything about what has happened on Saturday or what has happened previously.
“We have got to hit the reset button and give everything we’ve got in these upcoming fixtures to give us the best chance of taking maximum points, which will hopefully take us into the top six.”
Dons boss will use free week wisely
The three games which will shape Aberdeen’s top six hopes are against Hibernian, Dundee and Ross County.
The Dons are not in action again until Hibs visit Pittodrie on March 19 and Goodwin intends on putting the free weekend due to the club’s Scottish Cup exit at Motherwell last month to good use.
He said: “Three games in a week is always tough, but this free week gives us an opportunity to spend time with the boys on the grass.
“The players have been brilliant for the two weeks I’ve been in. Take the Hearts game out of it and we can’t ask for any more than they’ve given us on the training pitch.
“Hopefully we’ll be equally as prepared as we were at Rangers, but will carry more of an attacking threat.”
Ibrox display offers hope for Goodwin
Despite losing 1-0 at Ibrox at the weekend Goodwin believes there is cause for optimism from his side following their display.
The Aberdeen boss believes there was a market improvement on the poor performance in the 2-0 loss at Hearts last midweek.
He said: “We’re always disappointed to lose any game of football regardless of the opposition. We didn’t deserve to win the game, but the overall performance merited a point.
“The structure of the team, the organisation, the way they defended and put bodies on the line at times speaks volumes of the players – the fact Rangers, in 90 minutes, had only two attempts on target.
“Had we come away with a 0-0 and a clean sheet, it would have given everyone a lift.
“The commitment and effort was similar to the Dundee United game last weekend.
“We know we have to do better on the ball in the final third, but the players didn’t turn over cheap possession like they did at Hearts.
“We tried to play in the middle of the pitch and get good service up to the strikers on the pitch, but we struggled to get through Rangers’ backline.
“Wednesday was nowhere near acceptable and the players understood where the frustration came from.
“Saturday we were back to where we needed to be with an aggressive press. We didn’t park the bus on the 18-yard line, we went after them from the first minute.
“We tried to force them into cheap turnovers, but – in the last 20 minutes – we started to sit a little deeper and that invited the pressure which came.
“It was our third game in a week and a number of players hadn’t trained.
“We got every last drop out of Ross McCrorie, while Jonny Hayes gave us everything.”
