Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has stated that Sam Cosgrove is targeting their Scottish Cup semi-final clash against Celtic for his return date.
The Hoops and the Dons will clash on Halloween as last season’s competition finally starts to come to an end. Celtic will be looking to bag a spot in their eighth consecutive domestic cup final.
It initially looked as though Aberdeen would be going into the match struggling for forward options. Curtis Main has now returned to action however, whilst the Dons have snapped up former Inverness striker Marley Watkins.
But it’s Cosgrove’s return to action that would excite our rivals the most, with the striker having yet to play a minute of action this season. And speaking in the Press and Journal, McInnes said that the striker believes he’ll be fit to face the Hoops.
“Sam is hopeful that he’s on track for what he thought. He’s thinking he’ll be back by the end of October. He has the semi-final in his mind, he thinks he’ll be fit for that. That’s what he’s aiming for and so far he’s coming along well.
“Sam is coming along well, he gets a scan next week to check everything is healing properly. He’s feeling good, he’s out of the boot and in the gym doing some work on the bike.
“He’s not running yet but we are pretty confident with the way he’s feeling that the split in his cartilage is healing as was expected.”
A physical test for Duffy, Ajer and Jullien
Cosgrove was one of the strikers who gave Christopher Jullien and Kris Ajer a bit of bother last season. Indeed, the Englishman towered over the latter to net an equaliser at Celtic Park, and won too many aerial duels against Jullien.
If he’s fit for the Scottish Cup sem-final, it’ll prove to be a big physical test for both of our centre-backs.
Of course, that’s assuming they’ll both start. New signing Shane Duffy will most probably have forced his way into the side by then, and given his previous experiences in England, the Irishman should have no problem against the Aberdeen centre-forward.
Cosgrove has hardly been a slayer of the Hoops either. Of his 44 Aberdeen goals, only two of them have come against us. That’s despite having played against Celtic on 11 different occasions (Transfermarkt).
His return won’t concern many in the Celtic support, but it will add a layer of physicality to our back-line’s remit on the day.
Hopefully, regardless of who starts for the Dons, we’re all celebrating yet another semi-final success.
In other news, Celtic have reportedly been hit with a setback in their bid to get fans back to Parkhead.
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