Wary of what lies beneath

team-mates must protect him better in future.

He said: “Bainey was unbelievable on Friday. That’s what he does.

“We almost rely on him at times. We’ve got him to thank for keeping the score down.

“But we’d like him to be quieter, so we need to defend better on the pitch.”

Despite their disappointing start to 2017, Ross insists confidence remains undented in the Dark Blues dressing-room.

“We didn’t go to Aberdeen on Friday thinking we were going to get beat, we thought we could take something,” he said.

“It’s just the quality on the pitch we aren’t producing at the moment.

“But the league table is very tight at the bottom. Every team can beat anyone.

“Nobody is certain for the top six other than the top three or four, and nobody is certain for relegation.

“We just need to keep scrapping away and win as many as we can.”

Meanwhile, Aberdeen captain Ryan Jack, who notched against Dundee on Friday, insists his loyalty to Aberdeen is unquestionable.

But the Dons skipper, who is out of contract in the summer, will not be rushed into signing a new deal at Pittodrie.

Reds boss Derek McInnes issued a winter-break plea for his captain to repay the club’s long-standing faith in him by penning a new contract. He has not yet done so. But Jack is irked by suggestions that his reluctance to sign on the dotted line is indicative of a lack of devotion to the Dons.

He said: ““I do want to stay. I love the club. But sometimes you just have to see what happens out there and go with the flow.”