Aberdeen’s injury woes can mean an opportunity for young players to step forward and stake their claim for a regular start.
The injuries suffered by midfielders Craig Bryson, pictured, Funso Ojo and Jon Gallagher against St Johnstone were a blow.
They came just days after Scott Wright sustained a cruciate ligament injury that looks set to rule him out for the season.
When you add in the injury absence of centre-backs Scott McKenna and Ash Taylor as well as midfielder Stephen Gleeson, the Dons do not have their troubles to seek.
The injuries sum up the life of a manager because you do not know what you will have from one game to the next. However, that is why building a strong pool of players is vital.
These injuries can give others the opportunity to make a statement to the manager that they should be in the starting team.
That is why I didn’t want to be injured as a player because it gave someone an opportunity to come in and take your place.
For me it was always a case of get back to fitness as quickly as possible so I didn’t give my replacement the chance to get up steam in terms of performances. Otherwise you could lose your place.
That was shown when Shay Logan returned from injury but was on the bench against Saints with Zak Vyner starting instead.
This article originally appeared on the Evening Express website. For more information, read about our new combined website.