Ross County remain cautious as they decide when to pitch speedy striker William Akio into Premiership action.
The forward, who suffered a knee injury in what was an impressive debut in the Staggies’ 7-0 Premier Sports Cup group stage tie rout over East Fife in July, has made a far quicker than expected return.
Signed from Valour FC in Canada, the 24-year-old is a player with bags of talent, energy and an eye for goal.
His injury was expected to sideline him for several months, but he was on the bench as County were knocked out of the League Cup in a 4-1 home loss against holders Celtic.
Akio made an ‘unbelievable recovery’
Assistant manager Don Cowie explained Akio cannot wait to be unleashed on weekend league visitors Aberdeen, but insists the coaches and medical staff will only play him when they’re confident he’s ready.
He said: “We had a training session with the players who didn’t start, and William was a big part of that.
“I’ve seen close-up that he’s itching to go, and I’m sure he would have liked to get on the pitch against Celtic.
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“It’s still early, he has made an unbelievable recovery from what happened, so we’ve got to be cautious and look after the welfare of the player.
“We’ll manage the minutes he plays, but he’s definitely available as an option.”
Striker’s pace can trouble teams
County have just one win on board, which came in the recent 1-0 home win over Kilmarnock.
A 4-0 league loss at Rangers and that midweek defeat by Celtic in the League Cup followed and the side are keen to net their second Premiership victory in a bid to kick clear of the lower reaches of the table.
Cowie believes Akio will be a real asset to County this year, capable of putting opponents on the back foot.
He said: “William is someone who, in that one game he played, looked electric.
“He’s got real pace, and pace hurts teams.
“It’s a great option for us, and it was obviously disappointing for the player and for us that he picked up an injury, but that can happen.
“I’m just delighted now that he’s back available, and he’s part of a group that has had a tough run of fixtures, but it’s up to us now to go and get results and get that momentum back that we had last season.”
Hamstring doubt over Harmon
One player who is a real doubt for the weekend is George Harmon, who has impressed in the left-side of midfield after playing as a full-back after coming on against St Mirren recently.
Harmon came off at half-time against Celtic and the medical team and coaches have been assessing how he is.
Cowie confirmed the initial news, at least, is encouraging for the player snapped up from Oxford City in July.
He said: “George felt something in his hamstring, but I’ve seen him walking about which for me would be a positive.
“He’s not looking in too much pain, so that will take a couple of days to settle down and we’ll see the extent of what has actually happened and what the damage is.
“Fingers crossed it’s nothing too serious, because he has played the last two games and he’s fitting in well.
“George has really impressed us since he came in. He has had to bide his time to get on the pitch, but he’s coming along nicely.”
Big changes at Staggies and Dons
When Ross County last played Aberdeen, in April, their 1-0 Pittodrie win secured top-six football, with the Dons heading towards their eventual 10th position.
Aberdeen manager Jim Goodwin signed 11 players over the summer, with County adding just one new face less than that, so there are big changes all-round ahead of this weekend’s Dingwall clash.
Cowie feels the visitors, boosted by six-goal striker Bojan Miovski, will be tough opponents, but he wants his players to show they’re a force on home turf.
He said: “They’re a very different team to the one we beat to get into the top six at the end of last season.
“They’ve changed their personnel, they’re scoring plenty of goals and they’ve got a striker who is in very good form.
“They will come here confident as you would expect, but we won our last home game here in the league, so now it’s about doing what we did last year and making this a very hard place to come.”
County eager to build up league wins
While there is a real sense of pride at becoming the sixth-best side in Scotland last term, Cowie hopes that, following a testing run of matches, they can start banking points.
He added: “It was a massive achievement at the time, and we want to build on what we did last year – that was a big part of it.
“We’ve had a difficult run of fixtures. In the league and cup we’ve played Hearts, Rangers and Celtic twice, so it has been a challenge.
“Now it’s about us putting a run of form together and picking up points.”
County welcome back defender Jack Baldwin and midfielders Ross Callachan and Yan Dhanda from suspension.
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