Livingston manager Gary Holt brushed off the significance of travelling to Pittodrie with his team above Aberdeen in the Ladbrokes Premiership.
Holt has told his players they cannot slack off on the standards of work-rate that have served them so well as they prepare to face Derek McInnes’ side for the first time this season.
Livi jumped above Aberdeen into sixth spot following their victory over St Mirren on Saturday but that was news to Holt.
And the former Kilmarnock midfielder will not accept players thinking they have achieved anything yet.
“We don’t even look at the table,” he said. “I couldn’t even have told you we were sixth until someone told me after the game on Saturday. The table only really matters at the end of the season. We will look at it then.
“We want to enjoy every game and I want to see them playing with a smile on their face. But how do you enjoy it? By working hard. If you’re not working hard, you ain’t going to get nothing. That’s in any walk of life.
“You don’t just turn up and things are handed to you and Tuesday is not going to be any different.
“We have to go to Aberdeen and work damned hard to get anything out of the game because they are a very good side and they have a manager who knows what it takes to finish second year after year and get to cup finals.”
Holt will consider changes after Ryan Hardie netted on his first start of the season and with Scott Robinson battling to overcome a hamstring problem.
And Jack McMillan, Jack Hamilton and Craig Sibbald have forced their way into contention to start at Pittodrie after contributing to Livi’s second half fightback on Saturday.
Holt said: “Ryan has come back after a long spell out so there’s a bit of tightness and stiffness, as have one or two others because Friday will be our fifth game in 13 days.
“It’s a bit much to be asking the same players to produce time after time. We are fortunate they normally do. We have to look after them as best we can but we have a game on Tuesday night and we want to go and win the game.
“In an ideal world, when I played you wanted to play every single game. You just can’t. It’s physically impossible these days to go constantly – game, train, game, train, travel, game.
“So we will have a look to see what areas we can change. You are asking players to come in and take their chance.
“On Saturday all three of our subs came on and made an impact and did themselves no harm. It’s about trust, can I trust them to start a game, the boys we are putting in, and I would like to think most games we can.”
