Aberdeen play host to Hibernian on Saturday afternoon looking for the win which will move them to the brink of securing third spot in the Scottish Premiership standings.

However, Hibs make the trip to Pittodrie knowing that they can close the gap to that position in the table to three points if they can claim an away victory.

Match preview

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Since Barry Robson was initially appointed as caretaker manager, Aberdeen have barely looked back with the former midfielder instigating a remarkable upturn in fortunes.

An eight-match winning streak in the top flight has left the Dons as favourites for third spot when it appeared at one stage that they would struggle to make the top six.

A 1-0 defeat at Rangers last time out put an end to that run of victories, yet Robson will recognise that leaving Ibrox with anything would have been a bonus.

With four matches remaining, Aberdeen sit five points clear of fourth place, while another points separates them from fifth-placed Hibernian in the race for European qualification.

However, with the latter travelling North at the weekend, Robson and his squad are aware that things could quickly change if they fail to get back on track on Saturday.

Hibs undoubtedly hold the tag of most inconsistent side in the Scottish Premiership this season, regularly following strong runs of form with sustained periods of defeats.

As it stands, though, Lee Johnson's side are on one of their positive streaks with seven points being collected from their last three fixtures.

The victories over Hearts and St Mirren have been hard-fought, particularly the latter as they came from behind to ensure that they went into this game in fifth.

Nevertheless, it was a necessary show of character from a team that has now scored in 14 successive league contests, something which will not be lost on their hosts.

Team News

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On the back of the spirited performance at Rangers, Robson may see no reason to make any changes to his Aberdeen XI for this contest.

With Graeme Shinnie serving the third match of his ban, Ryan Duncan is expected to retain his spot in the central midfield three.

Jake Doyle-Hayes will continue to be assessed by Hibs before this game having sustained a head knock during the first half versus St Mirren.

Josh Campbell will deputise if his teammate is not passed fit, and no further alterations are expected unless there are late injury issues.

Aberdeen possible starting lineup:
Roos; Pollock, MacDonald, Scales; Coulson, Ramadani, Clarkson, Duncan, Hayes; Duk, Miovski

Hibernian possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Egan-Riley, Fish, Hanlon, Stevenson; Cadden, Doyle-Hayes, Jeggo, Newell, Youan; Nisbet

We say: Aberdeen 2-1 Hibernian

This has all the makings of a competitive encounter with Hibs knowing that they need to push for all three points if they want to stay in the hunt for third. Nevertheless, we expect Aberdeen to get back on track with a tense triumph in front of their own supporters.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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