Aberdeen’s four-match winning run was brought to a halt by Hearts’ smash-and-grab 3-1 win at Pittodrie on Saturday, with the pain of defeat compounded by injury and suspension problems.
Midfielder Willo Flood has injured the same hamstring which forced him earlier in the season. He will have a scan on the injury today but is facing a similar spell on the sidelines.
His first-half replacement on Saturday, Barry Robson, will miss the Dons’ trip to his former club Celtic on November 23 as he serves a suspension following the 12th red card of his career.
Dons defender Mark Reynolds had few excuses for the defeat but reckoned referee Iain Brines should have reduced the visitors to 10 men. Hearts’ Dylan McGowan was lucky to escape punishment for a handling a Michael Hector shot, with Aberdeen already 1-0 in front after Niall McGinn’s opener.
Brines did award the Dons a penalty moments after the McGowan incident but McGinn’s spot kick was saved by Jamie MacDonald.
Second-half goals from Jamie Walker, Callum Paterson and Ryan Stevenson secured the win for the Jambos – only their third Premiership victory of the season but their second against the Dons.
Reynolds said: “I have to be careful about what I say but a few decisions did not go our way – everything went their way. In recent matches we have been taking our chances but it did not happen for us.
“Barry’s red card was probably the right decision but there was a decision to make before that and all we want is consistency.
“Their player handled on the line, it was a red card and a penalty but it was not given. We had Barry sent off which gave them a lift and everything which could have gone wrong did go wrong.”
After dominating the opening 45 minutes, Aberdeen’s defence conceded for the first time in 426 minutes and went on to ship a further two goals.
Reynolds added: “We were all over the place for their goals – everyone knows it was not good enough. We have set our standards very high in the past few weeks.
“For their second goal we were pushing forward. We felt strong and thought we could score and go on to win the game. You would not have known which side was down to 10 men.
“Losing Willo was a blow. He’s the one who sets the tempo of the game.
“The way he plays is the way we play but there are other players who will now come into contention for a start against Celtic after the international break.”
Match focus, Pages 62, 63