Aberdeen defender Graeme Shinnie is relishing the challenge of trying to meet the heightened expectation levels at Pittodrie.
The Dons moved joint top of the Scottish Premiership after a 2-0 win against Kilmarnock on Sunday, level on points with Celtic and Hearts who have also made a flawless start to the new campaign.
The former Caley Thistle player, who joined the Dons in the summer, has fitted in seamlessly to his new team and netted his first goal of the season at the weekend.
Shinnie has noticed a change in approach at Aberdeen in comparison to what he was used to during his six years at Inverness.
He said: “I have seen John Hughes’ interviews and he has reiterated that Inverness are the underdogs. It was the same when I was there.
“Here it is up to us to win games and to push Celtic all the way.
“Teams will come to Pittodrie and sit in and it is up to us to go out and win games.”
The Dons are back in action on Saturday with a trip to face Motherwell after requesting to postpone their home match against Hamilton Accies, which would have taken place tomorrow.
Shinnie, whose Reds were knocked out of the Europa League last Thursday by Kairat Almaty, is disappointed European football has ended for the Dons but feels optimistic about the season ahead.
He added: “We were frustrated last Thursday.
“We didn’t create enough chances and our final ball wasn’t good enough.
“We were back at it on Sunday against Kilmarnock and we created a good few chances.
“It will be good to get a break to recharge the batteries.
“We have been playing matches on Sunday and Thursday and travelling all over the world.
“We will come back on Wednesday and look forward to the game against Motherwell.
“We have two wins and two clean sheets. I want to get as many clean sheets as possible.
“The front players are also playing well and it is all about laying down a marker.
“We will take it game by game and look to win as many as we can.”