by Stuart Gillespie

The off-season was one of change for the Dons, with manager Jimmy Calderwood leaving and Mark McGhee replacing him. After two years at Motherwell, McGhee relished the chance to return to the club where he enjoyed great success as a player, the highlight being lifting the Cup Winner's Cup in 1983. Another of the heroes from that famous win over Real Madrid, Jim Leighton, was at the club as a goalkeeping coach when McGhee arrived, but was surprisingly let go after years of service. It's probably best to ignore the current crop of players' exploits in Europe, but they've had a solid, if unspectacular, start under McGhee, and they currently sit level on points with Saints.

Calderwood often complained about the lack of financial resources at Pittodrie and that seems to be something McGhee has had to cope with as well, with summer signings few and far between. Former Swindon defender Jerel Ifil should be a good acquisition, while Davide Grassi should allow Charlie Mulgrew to get forward more often on the left hand side of the park. The most notable piece of transfer business involved a player leaving the club, with Scott Severin the latest Scot to try his luck in England by signing for Watford.

Despite that, McGhee was still left a good squad of players to work with. Lee Miller is an excellent striker and bagged 12 goals last season, while Sone Aluko - deadly on the wing or through the middle - can torment defenders with his pace and has recently been involved with Nigeria's under-20 squad. Zander Diamond and Andrew Considine - who once scored twice in a game at Love Street - are pretty solid at the back and behind them they have highly rated keeper Jamie Langfield, who is edging ever closer to earning his first Scotland cap.

Since Saints returned to the SPL in 2006, Aberdeen are the team they have fared poorest against. Goals, let alone points, have been hard to come by and they are the only current top flight side - apart from St Johnstone - they have yet to beat in any competition since promotion. Just three players - Kirk Broadfoot, Andy Dorman and Craig Dargo - have hit the back of the net against the Dons, all three getting on the scoresheet in 1-1 draws.

All other games have ended in defeat. Dargo's strike perhaps demonstrates just how much of a hoodoo the men from the Granite City seem to have on the Buddies, as it looked to be enough for a victory earlier this year before Tommy Wright headed in an equaliser with the last touch of the ball - while manager Gus MacPherson was desperately trying to make a substitution! Saints last win over Aberdeen was back in 2001 when Scott Walker and Steven McGarry scored in a 2-1 success, while the last win at Pittodrie was way back in March 1987 - before Steven McGinn and David Barron were born!

The two youngsters have started every league game for Saints so far this season and are likely to do so again tomorrow, although Barron is coming under pressure from the fit again Mo Camara. Also fit is Chris Innes, who could be added to the bench as defensive cover. This will be Lee Mair's first trip to Aberdeen since he quit the club for Saints in the summer and he'll be keen to show his former employers what they are missing out on.  Gus MacPherson bemoaned the lack of chances his side created against St Johnstone last week and may shuffle things around, with Garry Brady, Steven Robb and Stephen O'Donnell possible options in midfield, while Tom Brighton or Craig Dargo could be handed a start if he decides to change things up front. The only injury is Chris Smith, although the keeper is set to return to training in the next couple of weeks.

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