It is rarely dull around Pittodrie, but even by Aberdeen’s standards the last few days have been pretty eventful.
Neil Warnock guided the Dons to the last four of the Scottish Cup with a 3-1 success against Kilmarnock on Saturday before immediately stepping aside as interim manager.
A new manager could be appointed during the upcoming international break but before then Peter Leven is back in charge for the next two Aberdeen fixtures.
First up is a trip to Dens Park to take on a Dundee side hoping to move into the top six, while the Dons could move up to ninth spot with a win or a draw against the Dark Blues.
Aberdeen job not one for Peter Leven
Leven had only one game in charge during his first spell as interim manager following the departure of Barry Robson.
The 40-year-old impressed as he guided the Dons to a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Celtic at Pittodrie last month two days before the arrival of Warnock.
The former Kilmarnock and MK Dons midfielder has taken an interesting path on his coaching career.
Despite having only turned 40 in September, Leven has gained plenty of experience, starting with a spell working at the Middlesbrough youth academy before moving to Kilmarnock as Lee McCulloch’s assistant.
He spent two years in Belarus where he helped Dynamo Brest to the title before taking up a coaching position with Russian club Orenburg.
He returned to his native Scotland in June 2023 after joining Barry Robson’s staff.
Leven admits he would love to manage Aberdeen in the future but knows the Dons are looking for someone with more experience on this occasion.
Positive results tonight against Dundee and on Saturday at Motherwell would do his CV no harm at all.
A taste of his own medicine for Doc?
This time 10 years ago, Tony Docherty was helping Aberdeen prepare for a League Cup final against Caley Thistle that was only a few days away.
The former Dons assistant manager has enjoyed an encouraging start as Dundee manager with the Dark Blues sitting in seventh spot and only a point behind Hibernian who occupy the coveted final spot in the top six.
The sides drew 1-1 in January in what turned out to be Robson’s last game in charge of the Dons.
Dundee, unbeaten in their last three matches at home, start as favourites with the bookmakers, but the Dark Blues have won only one of their last 26 league meetings against the Dons.
Junior Hoilett could be key for Reds
Junior Hoilett gave a glimpse of why he has made 161 appearances in the English Premier League during his career.
The former Cardiff, QPR and Blackburn winger caused the Kilmarnock defence plenty of problems on his first start at Pittodrie on Saturday.
The Red Army will be hoping the 33-year-old produces more of the same against Dundee at Dens Park.
Meanwhile, Jamie McGrath is only one goal away from hitting double figures in an impressive first season at Pittodrie.
Same again for the Dons?
After Aberdeen produced their best performance for weeks in Saturday’s win against Kilmarnock, picking the team should be a pretty straightforward task for Leven.
He has no injury worries and anything other than the same starting XI would be a surprise.
Goalkeeper Trevor Carson is out for Dundee with a knee injury, so 23-year-old Jon McCracken, who is on loan from Norwich City, is set to make his third Premiership start of the season.
Predicted Aberdeen line-up (4-2-3-1): Roos; Devlin, Gartenmann, MacDonald, MacKenzie; Barron, Shinnie; McGrath, Phillips, Hoilett; Miovski.
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