3 big selection dilemmas for Dundee boss Tony Docherty - does Scott Fraser go straight in against Aberdeen?

Dundee face a serious test against high-flying east coast rivals Aberdeen this Saturday.

A bumper crowd is set to descend on Dens Park as the Dark Blues aim to get back to winning ways.

Do that and they will end Jimmy Thelin’s incredible start to life at Pittodrie and his 11-match winning streak.

Tony Docherty has a plan to become the first manager to get the better of Thelin during his time in Scotland.

He has, though, a number of big decisions to make ahead of Saturday’s clash – does he hand Dundee debuts to Scott Fraser and Clark Robertson against Aberdeen?

Will he ring the changes after back-to-back defeats?

Courier Sport analyses all the big calls ahead of a tasty weekend clash.

Goalkeeper

Jon McCracken has been Dundee’s No 1 this season, playing every minute of league football.

Trevor Carson, though, has been on cup duty and at Rangers last week kept the Dark Blues in the game as long as he could.

It was a strong performance from the experienced goalie and has done his chances of getting the call in goal no harm at all.

McCracken, though, has been in fine form himself and earned a first-ever Scotland call-up at the start of the month.

And the expectation is he’ll be back between the sticks against Aberdeen.

The popular Courier Sport podcast Twa Teams, One Street discussed why McCracken is likely to continue as first choice – see below to find out.

Change at the back

One certainty is that Jordan McGhee will be missing. He’s been ruled out for around a month with a calf injury.

Ethan Ingram would be the logical replacement and the former West Brom kid played 90 minutes for Dundee B in the Reserve Cup clash with rivals Dundee United B on Monday.

But will Docherty stick with his back four?

A leaky defence has been his biggest issue to solve this season and could see the manager revert to the 3-5-2 line-up he started the campaign with.

That’s how Dundee B started on Monday with Clark Robertson in the centre of a three-man defence with Ryan Astley on the right and Luke Graham on the left.

The temptation is there to throw Robertson into a debut as soon as possible, bringing that “dominance and organisation” into the backline.

The 31-year-old was signed to plug the gap left by Joe Shaughnessy’s injury, being the experienced man at the back.

However, they also don’t want to risk a recurrence of the injury. And being thrust into a battle with one of the in-form attacks in Scotland would be a big test.

Papa Gueye has plundered six goals in his last six games, bringing a real physical threat to the Dons frontline alongside Kevin Nisbet, who is no slouch himself and has scored two in the last three.

Robertson only has 45 minutes of reserve football under his belt, though he was up against Premiership-level opponents in Louis Moult, Sam Dalby and Glenn Middleton.

He may well have to wait a little longer for his first start.

Midfield options and Scott Fraser debut?

The likelihood is we will see a bit of Scott Fraser in action for Dundee on Saturday.

Whether it is from the start or off the bench, we’ll have to wait and see.

Fraser also featured for the B team on Monday, performing well in his 45 minute display, and did pre-season with Charlton and has been training on his own since leaving the Valley.

However, he did not play for the Addicks this term and only joined in with his new team-mates on Thursday.

He will not be ready for a full 90 minutes yet and the likelihood is he’ll start on the bench.

That would leave another decision for Docherty – does he stick with Mo Sylla, Lyall Cameron and Sammy Braybrooke?

Josh Mulligan got his chance against Ross County but failed to make the impact he is capable of.

However, the Scotland U/21 man stood out against United B in Monday’s reserve clash.

No one has yet grabbed the shirt left vacant by Luke McCowan’s absence.

Will it be Braybrooke, Mulligan or Fraser joining Sylla and Cameron in the middle?

That’s the biggest decision of all for Tony Docherty this weekend.