Aberdeen boss Derek McInnes expects Hearts to have a spring in their step when the teams meet in the Betfred Cup quarter-finals at Tynecastle.
The Jambos head into Wednesday’s cup clash fresh from Sunday’s comeback victory over rivals Hibernian in the Edinburgh derby – a result which lifted them off the foot of the Ladbrokes Premiership table.
And McInnes expects Craig Levein’s men to take the confidence gained from that important win into their meeting.
Ahead of the trip, McInnes told REDTV: “There will obviously be a lot of positivity after the back end of the game against Hibs.
“I think any big victory makes you feel good about yourself. The supporters and players there will be feeling good about themselves.
“Craig (Levein) has been in the game long enough to know the importance of winning those types of games and I think when you win derby games, regardless of where, it can give you a bit of a spring in your step.
“And I expect that to probably be the case.”
McInnes stressed the importance of cup football to Aberdeen and set his sights firmly on steering the club into the semi-finals of a competition they won in 2014.
Despite their extensive injury list, he believes Aberdeen have enough to get a result on Wednesday.
“The cups are our best opportunity of success,” added McInnes.
“I think when Celtic and Rangers are doing their job in the league and recruiting well – and they’ve obviously got two very good managers in place – with the money they’ve got, it’s difficult for any team to compete with these clubs through the league.
“So the cups offer us the best chance. We’ve obviously won one cup and been close on other occasions and have always seen the importance of cup football at the club.
“We go into the game with our own mission, our own agenda to try and get the club into another semi-final.
“We’re trying to manage the situation with injuries. Obviously we’re a bit restricted about different options, what we can do.
“But we’ve still got enough good players that can go and get a positive result.”
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