Dundee boss Paul Hartley has reminded his players they will be in the top six if they can win at Pittodrie.
The Dark Blues already faced a daunting challenge against an in-form Aberdeen side tomorrow night but they made their task even tougher by suffering a shock Scottish Cup defeat to St Mirren last Saturday.
The 2-0 loss came as a real blow, especially because it was so unexpected.
The cup gloom had taken time to clear but things will look much brighter if – and it is a big if – they can get a victory against the Dons.
They would then move ahead of Ross County and Partick Thistle into the upper half of the Premiership table, with those two clubs not playing until the following day against Kilmarnock and Inverness respectively.
That is a motivating factor in itself but you get the feeling the Dundee players won’t need much encouragement to improve on the dire display against the Buddies.
Hartley said: “We are only a point off the top six and can get in there on Friday night.
“That is the motivation for us.
“Of course, there is nobody more disappointed than myself and you beat yourself up over what happened at the weekend.
“There has been a big reaction because we all know the importance of a good cup run but that game has gone and we have to focus on Aberdeen now.
“We have all had to face the criticism, which is part and parcel of the game.
“You can use that as motivation but I think the players can motivate themselves to be honest.
“We didn’t see that cup result coming.
“It was the same team I put out against St Johnstone on Hogmanay. I didn’t change anything.
“What the players didn’t do was perform and they have to take responsibility for that.
“I’m sure they will.
“We are looking for a big response after a disappointing result and performance.
“The players have got to show a little bit of character.
“They know they let themselves down so we’ve got to make sure we face up to the challenge on Friday night.”
Dundee could come up against Ryan Christie tomorrow after Aberdeen added him to their squad after recruiting him on loan from Celtic.
Hartley knows him well but stressed that he will be only one of several top players in the Dons team if he makes his debut.
“We will be playing against a team that’s going great and have excellent home form,” added the Dens boss.
“They have now added to the pool with an excellent signing in Ryan Christie.
“He hasn’t played as much at Celtic as he did at Inverness but he is a good player.
“He will be looking to go there and impress but he’s just one of many talents in the Aberdeen squad.
“What we have to do is go there with our game plan and hopefully carry it out.
“The players have to be ready because it doesn’t come any tougher than going away to Aberdeen.”
The Dark Blues will be without suspended skipper Darren O’Dea but don’t have any other new selection problems.
