Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Del hopes decision not to rush Scott back will pay dividends for Dons
ABERDEEN boss Derek McInnes hopes the decision not to rush Scott McKenna back will pay off with the defender being long-term injury free.
Following five weeks sidelined with a hamstring tear, centre-back McKenna returned for the 1-1 draw with Hibs.
McInnes revealed the Scotland cap could potentially have been pitched in for the games against Rangers and Hearts.
Both games ended i n defeats but McInnes hopes the call to wait on McKenna will pay dividends.
McInnes said: “We have taken our time with Scott.
“The work he had done, Scott could potentially have been back before the Hearts and Rangers games. However, we didn’t want to risk him being in and out with hamstring trouble.
“Hopefully, we get the reward f rom that with Scott being fit f or a sustained period.”
McInnes, in consultation with Scotland boss Steve Clarke, also opted against McKenna being called up for international duty last week.
Clarke was faced with injury withdrawals at centre-back for the Euro 2020 qualifiers against Russia and San Marino.
Charlie Mulgrew, who started in the 4-0 defeat in Moscow but was dropped for the 6-0 win against San Marino, was t he only experienced centre-back.
The other three, i n c l u d i n g A b e r d e e n ’s Mikey Devlin, were uncapped prior to Moscow.
McInnes said: “We came to the conclusion that the best thing for Scott was a full working week training.”
Devlin made his Scotland debut in Russia and maintained his starting spot for San Marino.
The 26-year-old met up w i t h S t e v e C l a r k e ’s international squad after dropping to the bench for the 1-1 draw with Hibs.