McInnes feels certain season won’t be forced into shutdown
DEREK McINNES is convinced the way Scottish f ootball has responded to the challenge of Covid-19 means this season won’t be curtailed despite a return to the level of infection that halted the previous campaign.
Aberdeen travel to Fir Park t onight f or t he first t i me since their trip to Motherwell was cancelled as the country prepared to go into lockdown back in March.
McInnes admits there have been problems along the way since the domestic game resumed at the start of August, including at his own club, where a breach of coronavirus protocols led to the postponement of three Dons matches earlier this season.
Despite t hat, however, he believes the overall effort put in to keep the game going deserves recognition and that they will be able to see the current campaign through to the finish.
He said: ‘I must admit, I haven’t thought about anything else other than the season being completed. I’ve been encouraged by how well the clubs are doing.
‘ Yes, i t hasn’t been without incident and it’s easy to highlight the failings of some incidents, including at our own club.
‘ But c l ubs are doing an unbelievable job to get this whole thing moving.
‘There are so many sacrifices being made, so much financial output just to get the whole thing up and running.
‘Clubs have done so much right, including ourselves, and every club is working extremely hard just to get football played.
‘If we take ourselves back to the summer, and how disappointed we were that we were being denied football, we were getting the chance to work properly denied.
‘ If we take ourselves back to then, we’d have cut our right hand off just to be where we are now and playing football week in, week out.
‘I’m not going to complain about how many f i xtures we have on the road, or the congestion, because I’d much rather deal with those issues than the issues we had. I think clubs have done a brilliant job.
‘It’s only now with the new strain and the new situation that you fear we’re maybe going to go into lockdown beyond the three weeks. Hopefully, we can continue to sail through it and just keep continuing to do what we’re doing.’
McInnes yesterday refused to rule out a return to the club for Gary Mackay- Steven after the winger was released by MLS side New York City following two years in America.
The pair have kept in touch during the former Celtic player’s t i me in t he Big Apple and McInnes admits he would like to be reunited with the man who hit 15 goals in two seasons at Pittodrie.
‘For us, anything we can or can’t do will be dependent on being able to move one or two players on,’ said McInnes.
‘We’ve got one or two positions prioritised and players within that, but I think we would always be open to bringing good players to the club.
‘Gary’s exactly that. We didn’t want to lose Gary in the first place. His numbers were good with us.’
Meanwhile, Motherwell boss Stephen Robinson is another manager looking for a signing which he hopes could spark their season back into life.
The Steelmen have lost four consecutive games and are looking for their first win in seven matches when they host the Dons this evening.
Robinson’s men face Dundee United, Kilmarnock and Hamilton Accies in the following ten days and the manager is preparing to do some January wheeling and dealing with a squad he admits may be in need of a jolt.
‘At some stage, you have to hold your hands up and say some signings haven’t worked and try to rectify that, which we do every year,’ he said. ‘With the level of player we are bringing in, some work, some don’t work. Everyone will tell you the same, no matter how much money you spend.
‘It’ s Christmas now, some people might not have done what we expected and we need to either get more from them or change that.’
Robinson admitted coronavirus restrictions were making it more difficult to entice players up from England but he added: ‘I have got one quite far down the line. We are braced if anyone comes in for one of our players as well.
‘January is a difficult transfer window, but we have been relatively successful. We have brought Gboly Ariyibi and Rolando Aarons in during that time.
‘Sometimes one signing just sparks you and sparks other players who people have maybe criticised.
‘So we are working on that and are prepared for all eventualities which, when you are manager of Motherwell, can happen.’
Motherwell welcome Jake Carroll back in their squad following a long-term Achilles injury, although the left-back is unlikely to start after ten months on the sidelines.