Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has provided a fresh update on Sam Cosgrove’s fitness ahead of a massive double-header with Celtic this month.
McInnes’ side host Neil Lennon’s Champions on October 25th in Premiership action, before clashing once again in their rearranged Scottish Cup semi-final on Halloween less than one week later.
Meanwhile, Cosgrove hasn’t played a single minute of action this season, but it hasn’t stopped the Dons from continuing to rattle in goals. They’ve only failed to score in two of their 11 matches this season, hammering home five in their last two domestic games.
But even so, Cosgrove provides them with a physical presence that isn’t matched by any of their other forwards. And going by McInnes’ comments, it appears he’ll be ready in time for those Celtic matches.
As quoted by the Evening Express, the Aberdeen manager said: “Hopefully coming out of the international break we will have two or three of them back in contention for Dundee United. Sam’s knee is coming along fine, although he will not be in contention for Dundee United.
“The plan for Sam was to be back in full training by mid-October, which would give him a couple of weeks’ work ahead of the Scottish Cup semi-final.”
Another chance for Shane Duffy to show we’ve improved at the back
We all know what Celtic’s achilles heel was at the back last season – their failure to deal with genuinely big and physical centre-forwards.
Lyndon Dykes, Nicke Kabamba, Marios Ogboe, Ross Stewart, and Cosgrove were all examples of strikers who used their power to get joy out of Christopher Jullien and Kristoffer Ajer.
Yet that’s exactly why Shane Duffy was signed on loan from Brighton in the summer. This is the kind of battle he should be thriving in – the physical challenge against powerful strikers.
Cosgrove’s main strength is his ability to ruffle centre-backs and use his aerial ability to find the net. Duffy has a big chance here to show that the Celtic defence has improved in that respect and give nothing away to the Englishman.
Judging by McInnes’ words, it’s clear he wants him ready to have his first start of the season in the Scottish Cup semi-final on Halloween. For players like Cosgrove who play a power game, it shouldn’t take him long to get up to speed sharpness-wise. His game isn’t so much down to his ball-technique, so McInnes will be happy to throw him in if he’s fit enough.
A start in the Pittodrie league game looks a bit of a stretch, even if he’s back in training after the international break. It makes sense for McInnes to hand that role to a forward who deserves their shot in a big game against us. But whether it’s Marley Watkins or Curtis Main, Celtic won’t be flustered.
We should be able to deal with anything they offer in both matches.
In other news, a potential pre-contract move for Celtic is still on after a Premier League club confirmed a signing yesterday.
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