Former Aberdeen defender Brian Irvine insists the race for third place is the Premiership is over.
The Dons’ 2-0 win against Rangers on Sunday means they will go into the post-split fixtures with a five-point lead.
Irvine, who scored the winning spot-kick in Aberdeen’s 1990 Scottish Cup final victory against Celtic at Hampden, believes the form of the respective teams suggests Barry Robson’s team will pip the Jambos to third.
He said: “I think five points is too big a gap for Hearts to catch Aberdeen.
“Hearts would need to win every game almost to catch the Dons and that’s not going to happen.
“They were well ahead of Aberdeen, but fortunes have swung quickly in the Dons’ favour.
“It is expecting a lot for the fortunes of both clubs to change so drastically back the other way at this stage.”
‘Aberdeen won’t rest on their laurels’
Momentum is with the Dons after a stunning run of seven wins in a row in the league propelled them past a Hearts side which lost six games in a row.
Having watched Robson galvanise the team since replacing Jim Goodwin in the Dons dugout, Irvine cannot see the Dons’ push being derailed with the finish line in sight.
He said: “Hearts beat Ross County 6-1 on Saturday, but had been on a terrible run before that game. It would need for Aberdeen to go on a run like that and for Hearts to win every week.
“On current form, it looks unlikely for both teams.
“Aberdeen won’t sit back and rest on their laurels waiting for it to happen. They still need to go and make it happen, but I expect Aberdeen to finish third.”
Dons board will find it hard to overlook Robson if he leads Aberdeen to third place
Robson was initially installed as interim manager in January, but was confirmed as boss until the end of the season due to his impressive results.
Leading a team from a run of one win in 10 matches to eight victories from their last 10 games has put the 44-year-old firmly in the frame as the long-term successor to Goodwin.
With the Dons continuing to rack up victories and on the cusp of sealing a return to Europe – and with it the possibility of guaranteed involvement until Christmas – Irvine believes the Aberdeen board will find it hard to resist the clamour for Robson to be given a long-term deal.
“I think it would be hard to overlook Barry if he leads the club to third place but that’s for other people at the club who are working with him on a daily basis to judge,” Irvine said.
“I can only look at the results on the pitch and it’s been amazing what has happened so far.
“Clearly Barry knows what he is doing as a coach, but the results are incredible.
“He couldn’t have done much better when you think the two defeats came at Celtic and after Ross McCrorie was sent off after five minutes in his first game against St Mirren.
“That horrendous week either side of the Darvel game (under sacked boss Jim Goodwin) will always be part of Aberdeen’s history.
“The heavy loss at Hearts, then the Darvel defeat and another big defeat at Hibs will still be talked about 25 years from now.
“It was as low as it gets for the club, which makes what the team has done under Barry so impressive in making it feel like ancient history already.”
"No club in the top-10 divisions across Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland have won their last seven league games… Well, except Aberdeen."
Sean Wallace: Dons boast best league form in Britain – confirm Barry Robson as permanent manager https://t.co/7CwaFg6bdk pic.twitter.com/T2prYWyepG
— EveningExpress Sport (@ee_sport) April 26, 2023
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