Dons manager Derek McInnes has played down talk of gaining revenge on Motherwell when the sides meet at Pittodrie tomorrow evening.
It will be the first meeting of the teams since Motherwell secured second place on the final day of last season – thanks to Craig Reid’s injury-time winner at Aberdeen’s ground.
It was a hugely frustrating finish to the 2013-14 season for the Dons and meant they had to enter the Europa League qualifiers one round earlier than the Steelmen.
But rather than revenge, McInnes believes the focus will be on returning to winning ways after last Friday’s 3-0 defeat by leaders Hamilton Accies.
He said: “It is another three points at stake and we just want to focus on ourselves.
“Regardless of how we have played or what has happened in the past, it is about doing all we can to get the three points. That is always the biggest motivation for us.”
Motherwell are unbeaten at Pittodrie since November 29, 2008 when Jimmy Calderwood marked his 200th game in charge of the Dons with a 2-0 win – with goals from Lee Miller and Gary McDonald.
McInnes will be looking for a much-improved display after the abject performance against the Accies last week. But he reckons his side’s confidence should not be dented after a first defeat in six matches. He added: “It was a disappointing result but we move on from it.
“We analyse a loss more than a winning performance but at the same time we can’t dwell on it.
“The games are coming thick and fast and we have to make sure we are ready for the next one.
“We want to show a positive reaction and we have always shown that reaction in the past after we have had a disappointing performance.
“But there has to be a recognition it was our first defeat in six games and we have had four wins and a draw in that time.
“There have been some strong performances so we are not going to get too down about it, but we do plan to try to bounce back.”
The Dons have no fresh injury worries but the game will come too soon for captain Russell Anderson and left back Clark Robertson, who both remain sidelined.