Hearts' Prince Buaben insists there is no panic at Tynecastle in spite of the back-to-back defeats. The newly-promoted side made a stunning start to their Premiership return as they rattled off five successive wins. However, Robbie Neilson's side had their bubble burst when Hamilton and then Inverness proved to be too strong. If the Gorgie men were looking for an easier task to halt that disappointing run, the fixture list did them no favours as they now prepare to face table-topping Aberdeen at Tynecastle. However, the Gorgie club will have the luxury of a sold-out support cheering them on and Buaben believes a packed Tynecastle can make the difference for his side.
The Ghanaian midfielder said: "It's still early in the season. Yes, we've lost two games, but there's so many games left to play. All teams go through spells like that, it won't be a problem for us. Playing at Tynecastle in front of a sold-out crowd is great for the boys, it gives us such a boost. These are the games you want to play in, you want to do well for the team and fans and hopefully on Sunday we'll go out and get a result."
The Dons have not picked up a victory at Tynecastle since 2010 but Buaben is well aware of the dangers posed by the Pittodrie side. He went on: "They're a good organised team, they work hard and we'll have to play well on the day. We've got a good record against them and hopefully one that can be extended. Our game is about passing the ball and keeping possession, so if we do that well then we can beat any team.''
Aberdeen assistant manager Tony Docherty insists the league leaders will not fall for Celtic's mind games. Earlier this week Parkhead forward Kris Commons proffered his unrelenting belief that the Parkhead side will retain their Scottish crown come the end of the season, despite slipping five points behind after losing out to the Dons at Pittodrie last week. The former Scotland international tried to turn up the heat on Derek McInnes' unbeaten side when he said: "The expectation of winning every week will add certain pressures to them so hopefully they'll take it right to the wire, keep us interested, keep us on our toes." When considering how best to respond to those comments, Reds number two Docherty preferred to play it diplomatically. He said: "It's very early on. I know Derek has reiterated this as well. We're not focusing on that (the title race) at the moment. You guys (the media) don't like it but we are treating it on a game-by-game basis. We'll see where we are in the next couple of months, we'll see where we are round about Christmas in the table. We tell the players, don't be getting carried away or drawn into any of that (speculation about who will win the league), or getting drawn into any other team's (comments). We will just focus on what we are doing and hopefully on a matchday we will get the results we are looking for."
A week after their 2-1 win over Ronny Deila's side, the tests do not get any less daunting for Aberdeen as they take on Hearts today. It is a venue which has offered little solace to the men from the Granite City in recent times. You have to go back to January 2010 to find their last victory in Gorgie. But Docherty is not paying too much attention to the record books as his side look to extend their record-breaking start to the season to eight straight wins. He said: "I actually checked the stats earlier on. The last five times we've played Hearts (home or away) we've only won once. But for me, that all goes out the window. It's a new set of players, it's a new fixture, it's a new season. We will be endeavouring to do as much as we can with the 11 we pick to get the three points."