McInnes hopeful of Scotland call up for his players
Malky Mackay to announce his squad for friendly with Nertherlands
Derek McInnes is hopeful his Aberdeen stars will finally earn some long-awaited international recognition as Malky Mackay prepares to name his squad for the upcoming friendly against Holland in the Granite City.
Despite being Scottish Premiership runners-up three years on the spin, the only recognition the Dons have had from the national team is a solitary cap for Kenny McLean.
But McInnes thinks the time may have come for the midfielder to add to his haul, with Ryan Christie - like McLean, a goalscorer in Saturday's 2-1 win over Ross County - and Graeme Shinnie also in line for a call-up.
He said: "I've been optimistic before, but I've had a couple of conversations with Malky and I'm hopeful, I'm not sure but I'm hopeful, we'll get some sort of representation in the squad.
"I don't know what Malky's thinking, but I think those three will be there or thereabouts."
Turning to club matters, McInnes insists his side are focused only on themselves despite victory over County taking them back within a point of leaders Celtic.
He added: "We're just trying to get back on track and go on another winning run.
"It's not about keeping in touch with Celtic, it's all about being happy with our own work."
County led on Saturday through Michael Gardyne before being pegged back by Christie's rocket and McLean's penalty.
Assistant manager Sandy Stewart has been pleased with the effort of his side since he and manager Owen Coyle came into the club, and sees a bright future ahead as the club's injury problems start to clear up.
He commented: "We couldn't have asked for any more from the players. The effort the players are giving us is everything we've been asking for.
"We lost Andrew Davies before the game, he woke up with a stiff neck and just couldn't play, and he's a big player for us.
"The boys that came in did very well. We've no complaints, and we got Chris Routis back. That's the first time we've been able to get him on the pitch. He's a good player and hopefully he'll strengthen the squad."
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