Aberdeen Face Rangers at Hampden as Robinson Calls for a Reset

Aberdeen play Rangers in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Saturday, and their head coach Stephen Robinson says the big occasion is a chance to put things right. The kick-off is at 5.30pm, and the match will be shown live on Premier Sports.

Aberdeen arrive in a difficult spot. They are ninth in the Scottish Premiership, three points above the bottom, and have won only one of their last five games. On Wednesday they lost 1-0 at home to Falkirk.

Robinson spoke to the media at Cormack Park on Friday morning. He said a semi-final at Hampden is the moment for Aberdeen to put their disappointing results behind them. He also said that the pressure and expectation will be on Rangers.

The Premier Sports Cup is a knockout competition, so one defeat ends a team's run. Winning the semi-final puts a side one game from the final. Robinson knows what a win in this competition can mean. He led St Mirren to the trophy last year, when they beat Celtic in the final.

Rangers are coached by Derek McInnes, who spent close to eight years at Aberdeen. That gives the afternoon a familiar edge for a lot of supporters on both sides. Aberdeen's captain is Kevin Nisbet, who was given the armband during the summer.

The other semi-final in the competition is Heart of Midlothian against Hibernian. Both ties were due to be played over the weekend of 31 October and 1 November.

For Aberdeen, the task is clear. They need to turn a run of mixed results into something their fans can point to. For Rangers, the pressure is the reverse. A semi-final against a rival from the north-east is the kind of tie where a single goal can change a season's mood, and the days before it carry their own weight. Saturday will show which side handles that better.