Neil Warnock relishes underdog tag as Aberdeen face in-form Kilmarnock

Aberdeen boss Neil Warnock says his side will be the underdogs when they take on high-flying Kilmarnock on Saturday but will go into the match at Rugby Park believing they can cause an upset.

While the Dons have had a difficult season and currently sit eighth in the table with more defeats and wins so far, Derek McInnes’ Kilmarnock are having a season to remember and are in fourth and aiming for another win to bolster their European hopes.

Warnock has been impressed with what he’s seen of the Ayrshire side and highlighted the quality of their attack in particular. He believes Kilmarnock will be the bookmakers’ favourite to win but relishes the challenge.

“You’re going to be under pressure but what we have to do is make sure they are under pressure as well,” Warnock said.

“They’ve lost one in 13 games and that was Rangers.

“I think that shows you what we’re up against and I don’t think many people will be putting money on us, will they?

“But that’s where being the underdog comes in and I do like being the underdog.”

Aberdeen fell to a 2-0 defeat on their last trip to Rugby Park in October and Warnock promised a more committed performance, and that his team will go into the game thinking they can take three points.

“You’ve got to go into the game thinking you can win every game,” he said. “That’s what we do.

“We know what we’re up against. They’ve done really well and are an excellent team.

“But from watching the last game we’ve got to give them more of a game than the last time we went there.

“That’s what I can assure the fans of, that we’ll be putting more into that. I’m hoping so anyhow.”

Warnock and his coaching staff have enjoyed a full week on the training ground with no midweek game to plan for, and he has been working to make his team tougher to beat.

The veteran boss puts a lot of the goals conceded down to individual errors and has stressed the importance of keeping things simple as a recipe for improvement.

Warnock said: “They haven’t played badly but it’s just, what’s the point of playing well if you make a mistake and it cost you a goal?

“You’ve got to make sure that at the right time, you make the right decision.

“If in doubt, and I’ve said it all my career to centre-halves, ‘If in doubt, kick it out’.

“It’s not up against you as a defender. Everybody thinks they have to be Beckenbauer and be silky and play the ball. Put it into touch.

“They’re not going to score from the stand. It’s not rocket science.”