Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes believes his players can cope with the pressure of chasing the club’s highest top flight finish for 20 years.
The Dons are on course to match or even better the second-place finish last achieved in season 1993-94 when Willie Miller was in charge.
Having exited both cup competitions, Aberdeen’s sole focus is now on consolidating second place in the Scottish Premiership and pushing a Celtic side which has to juggle Europa League, Scottish Cup and League Cup commitments.
McInnes’ side can extend its unbeaten league run to 12 games when it travels to New Douglas Park to face Hamilton Accies on Sunday and the Dons manager has complete faith in his players as they reach the business end of the campaign.
He said: “I trust every one of my players, I have no hang-ups about any of them. Whatever team I pick, whatever squad is selected, they’re good enough and able enough to do the job.
“There’s a lot of good types in my team. There’s a lot of strength and maturity even though we are a young side.
“My three most experienced players, Willo Flood, Barry Robson and Russell Anderson, have missed a lot of the season. It shows me this team is capable without that level of experience. We’ve got the experience every club needs, but we’ve managed to get results without them as well.”
There was no hangover for the Dons following their League Cup semi-final defeat by Dundee United as they responded with a convincing 4-0 trouncing of bottom-placed Ross County on Saturday.
The Dons manager said: “With the expectation that comes in playing for Aberdeen, it’s important to know if we win a few games people can get carried away, but when we lose people are falling over themselves with frustration.
“It’s about keeping the players right and being professional at all times.
“It’s trusting how we work in games and from Monday to Friday.
“We are always like that, whether it’s on the back of a good or bad result, Monday morning is the same.
“If we have to address things from the weekend we do that but we move on.”
League 1 side Brechin City are considering a move to bring Dons midfielder Jamie Masson back on loan.