Aberdeen, unbeaten in the Premiership and flying alongside Celtic at the summit of the standings.
Dundee United, yet to taste defeat away from home in the league and fresh from a thrilling injury-time triumph over Hibs.
The stage is set for a cracker under the floodlights at a sold out Pittodrie, with the contest also being broadcast live on Premier Sports.
The selection dilemmas
United are expected to be without Ross Docherty and Louis Moult once again, meaning Sam Dalby is likely to lead the line, with Vicko Sevelj in midfield.
With Kristijan Trapanovski making a superb impact off the bench against Hibs last weekend, the biggest conundrum facing Goodwin is arguably whether the Macedonian ace comes back into the starting line-up.
Either Miller Thomson or Glenn Middleton would be the likely victims, if so.
Meanwhile, Richard Odada continues to push for action in the engine room and Ryan Strain will be on the bench for the first time in the Premiership this term.
3 Aberdeen danger men
It is a testament to Aberdeen’s wonderful start to the campaign that it feels churlish to narrow this down to three men. Nicky Devlin and Jack MacKenzie merit a mention.
However, Jamie McGrath – a familiar face to United fans after he was one of the few players to emerge from the relegation of 2022/23 with a semblance of credit – is enjoying a sensational campaign.
His stunning through-ball for Ester Sokler was key to the Dons roaring back from 2-0 down to claim a point against Celtic last week.
McGrath’s six assists are the most by a player in his side’s first eight Scottish Premiership matches of a season since the competition rebranded in 2013.
Graeme Shinnie is the combative heartbeat of Jimmy Thelin’s team – making challenges and starting attacks. No player in the Aberdeen squad has made more tackles (13) in the league than the former Inverness man.
He also popped up with a crucial goal against the Hoops, underlining an ability to push into the final third.
The six-figure outlay for Sivert Heltne Nilsen – even at the ripe age of 33 – looks to be money well spent.
Only Shayden Morris, who has played considerably fewer minutes, and Gavin Molloy, whose distribution tends to be far less ambitious, have a better pass accuracy than Nilsen (83.7%) in the Dons squad.
He dovetails superbly with Shinnie and starts many of the Reds’ attacks by being the first man to break the lines with a pass. Expect Goodwin to task one of his more attacking players to pester and hurry Nilsen.
What Jim Goodwin said
“It’s all set up to be a great game – clubs with rich histories in Scottish football.
“People will look back to the 1980s when the clubs were at their peak, competing at the top of the table domestically and in Europe. So, it’s great to have a game like this coming up. It will be a fantastic atmosphere up at Pittodrie.”
Head-to-head record at Pittodrie (last 5 games)
12/11/22: Aberdeen 1-0 Dundee United (Miovski pen)
26/02/22: Aberdeen 1-1 Dundee United (Edwards OG; McNulty pen)
01/08/21: Aberdeen 2-0 Dundee United (Hayes, Ramirez)
25/04/21: Aberdeen 0-3 Dundee United (McNulty x2, Edwards)
02/01/21: Aberdeen 0-0 Dundee United
Who is the referee?
Steven McLean, who awarded Dundee United two penalties when he last took charge of a game involving the Tangerines, will be the man in the middle on Saturday night.
He oversaw United’s 4-1 win over Partick Thistle in May – after which the Terrors received the Championship trophy – and pointed to the spot twice. Louis Moult missed one and scored the other.
McLean was most recently in action as ref for Kilmarnock’s 1-0 win over Rangers last weekend.
He will be assisted by Graeme Stewart and Gordon Crawford, with Gavin Duncan serving as VAR.
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