Aberdeen: Curtis Main joins Sam Cosgrove on sidelines against Rangers
- Published
Sam Cosgrove scored 23 goals in 37 appearances last season for Aberdeen
Aberdeen will open their Premiership campaign without their two top strikers, Sam Cosgrove and Curtis Main, manager Derek McInnes has confirmed.
He said Cosgrove should be missing for 8-10 weeks with a torn knee cartilage.
It had been feared Cosgrove would be out until December and McInnes' relief was tempered by Main's thigh strain.
That means 21-year-old Bruce Anderson will step in, but McInnes said: "Bruce has been doing great anyway, so I've no qualms about throwing him in."
Anderson scored once in 15 Dons appearances last season on his return from finding the net five times in 14 games on loan to Championship side Dunfermline Athletic, but he has impressed McInnes during pre-season.
"We have a young boy who has been champing at the bit," he said. "He's a regular goalscorer and we are fortunate to have him available.
"We're clearly short on numbers at centre forward, so I walked wee Bruce off the training pitch today just to make sure he was fit."
McInnes admits that Aberdeen are seeking a replacement, but, asked about Steven Fletcher, who has been released by Sheffield Wednesday, said the Pittodrie club "could not afford" the 33-year-old Scotland striker.
"He's a free agent but can still command a salary way above anything that anyone here gets," he said. "We are restricted financially as a club."
McInnes also pointed out that it is also more difficult to bring in players from English clubs on loan because the season has just finished there.
Cosgrove, who was injured during the Scottish Premiership side's friendly draw with Hibernian, will be on crutches for a couple of weeks but does not require surgery.
"It seems a bit silly saying you're delighted at losing your top scorer for two to three months, but it could have been an awful lot worse," McInnes added.
The Englishman, who turned down a £2m move to French second-tier club Guingamp this summer, scored 23 times last term and has 44 in 87 games for the Dons.
Compatriot Main, who scored four times in 24 games after signing from Motherwell last season, had proven an able replacement when Cosgrove's form dipped last season.