Preview: St Johnstone vs. Aberdeen - prediction, team news, lineups

Two teams with three points to their name from their opening three games will meet on Saturday as Aberdeen makes the journey to McDiarmid Park to play St Johnstone.

The hosts head into this particular fixture on the back of a heavy 4-0 defeat against Rangers, while the Dons were also beaten in a five-goal thriller.

Match preview

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St Johnstone kickstarted their season with a loss against Hibernian, and they were then beaten for a second time last weekend against Rangers with the Saints failing to score in either of those games.

The 4-0 loss against the Gers is something that the squad will want to put behind them, and they shall be trying to take confidence from the three points they picked up in between those games.

Callum Davidson's men left things late against Motherwell after a 91st-minute own goal from Graham Carey almost let the Steelmen take a point until Stevie May rescued the game with a 94th-minute strike.

That fighting spirit is something that St Johnstone will look to take with them into this weekend, as a victory would allow them to push up the table, potentially as high as fourth depending on other results.

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Aberdeen also finds themselves in that position as they have three points as well, with their only win also taking place on game week two of this season.

That one saw them come out on top against St Mirren with a dominant 4-1 victory as Bojan Miovski scored a brace, while Leighton Clarkson and Luis Lopes also got themselves on the scoresheet.

They followed that up by showcasing their attacking qualities once again last weekend in another league match against Motherwell, but despite scoring twice they ended up losing the match 3-2.

Miovski was able to find the back of the net once again in that match though, with the new signing proving himself with an immediate effect for the Dons.

After Aberdeen got dragged into a relegation battle at the end of last season, Jim Goodwin will be hoping to see his team start to secure more results in order to avoid a repeat of that.

Team News

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St Johnstone have a lengthy list of injury problems right now, which is something that Davidson is having to deal with as David Wotherspoon, Chris Kane, Callum Booth and Tony Gallacher are all on the shelf.

Pressure will also be ramping up on Theo Bair, who will likely act as the lone striker in this game as he did against Rangers last weekend, while the Saints will also be looking for a stronger defensive performance on the whole.

Mivoski has adapted perfectly to the Aberdeen squad this season, having scored three goals in the league already, and he is sure to be leading the line again this weekend as he aims to continue his fine form in front of goal.

Unfortunately for Goodwin, another new signing that has been unavailable recently due to injury is Hayden Coulson, and it is currently unclear when the full-back will be available for selection again.

St Johnstone possible starting lineup:

Matthews; Considine, Mitchell, McGowan; Montgomery, MacPherson, Hallberg, Wright; May, Carey, Bair

Aberdeen possible starting lineup:

Roos; Richardson, Stewart, McCrorie, Scales; Ramadani, Clarkson; Hayes, Besuijen, Kennedy; Miovski

We say: St Johnstone 1-3 Aberdeen

Goals are almost guaranteed in this game due to the poor defensive performances that the two teams have showcased in their respective opening matches.

Aberdeen have proven that they can cause problems for teams with their offensive abilities, and because things are so early in this particular campaign they will be considered the favourites here.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.