Billy Mckay wants to cash in on playing tonight to lift Caley Thistle to within one point of Championship leaders Kilmarnock.
The striker will be seeking his eighth goal in all competitions this season as ICT lock horns with Queen of the South in Dumfries in a showdown being shown live on BBC Scotland.
The Caley Jags are without a win in five outings and have slipped to third in the table, but the chance to deliver a Friday win before their rivals kick a ball is an incentive.
Killie welcome Arbroath to Rugby Park tomorrow, while Rovers host Morton.
Mckay said: “We’re looking to win the game and put pressure on the two teams above us.
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— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) November 17, 2021
“It will give us an extra day’s rest next week as well.
“It can definitely be a positive so long as we make sure we’re right at it. If we do that, we’ll get the win and ask a question of them.”
Inverness are looking to bounce back from last weekend’s 2-1 defeat by basement side Dunfermline Athletic, a game in which Mckay netted his second league goal of the term.
Despite the Queens not having won any of their last six fixtures, they have pulled off successive draws against promotion contenders Raith Rovers and Arbroath in the past two weeks.
Mckay backs side to deliver victory
Former Ross County hitman Mckay expects a challenging 90 minutes, but is sure they’ve enough quality to make the long trip home on the back of a win.
He added: “It will be a tough game, like every game in this league. We can make it easier for ourselves through our own performance.
“We want to focus on ourselves and keep our performance levels high and we believe if we do that and play to our ability, we’ll win most games in this division.
“Over the last few games we’ve played really well in spells but maybe not got the points we’ve deserved.
“It could just take that one win to turn the corner again and get back on the right track.”
ICT should have netted more points
And the 33-year-old goal-grabber reckons there’s no extra expectation on the team to score a much-needed victory because there has been enough positive signs to suggest a positive result is coming.
He said: “There’s always pressure on us – we put it on ourselves in training every week to go and get that win.
“We’ve been disappointed with the points we’ve collected lately. If you look at the performances, we should have more points.
“Friday’s game is the perfect opportunity to get back on track and put pressure on the teams above us. We believe we can do that.”
Caley Thistle still firmly in the mix
Despite not winning in the league since beating Morton 2-1 on October 16, Mckay points to their excellent form in the opening weeks which offers them to chance to move to within one point of top spot by 10pm.
He said: “We’ve been on a little run now where we’ve not taken enough points, but we’re still right in the mix – only four points off the top and one behind Raith.
“Even though we haven’t won in five in the league, we’re still right up there.
“Every team will have a little spell like this and it is about how you come through it.
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— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) November 18, 2021
“We’re looking to get the win against Queens and kick on from there.
“We just need to be a bit more ruthless at both ends of the park, take our chances. Defensively we’re getting punished at the minute without teams really carving us open or creating three or four chances.
“We have to keep the door shut, but also be ruthless and score goals.”