Ventspils' main man Ritvar Rugins speeds away from the Aberdeen defence and he hammers in a rising shot from the left edge of the penalty area. It's wide of the junction of post and bar, but not by much!

There are a few visiting fans at the game, with these members of the Red Army in good spirits before kick-off...

Image source, SNS

A set-piece might be Aberdeen's best bet of increasing their lead as a Mark Reynolds header from Niall McGinn's latest corner is easily gathered by the goalie.

Decent chance for the hosts as Girts Karlsons gets his head to a free kick in a busy penalty area but can only send the ball high over the crossbar.

First booking of the match goes to Aberdeen skipper Ryan Jack for a late challenge in the middle of the park. Soon after, the same player is penalised again for nibbling the heels of an opponent.

Scott Davie
BBC Scotland in Latvia

"Steady, professional start from Aberdeen as they are restricting the opposition's chances even though they are going with four up front at times to try to get back into the game.  "That leaves a lot of space for the likes of Jonny Hayes and Niall McGinn to get at them with quick breaks down the flanks."

Now Ash Taylor is making his presence felt at the other end of the park as the giant Dons defender nods a Kenny McLean corner over the crossbar.

A moment of hesitancy from Ash Taylor and the ball ricochets into the path of a home player in front of goal but Joe Lewis is off his line swiftly to smother the danger.

Ritvar Rugins, an experienced Latvia international, shells in a long throw-in, although it's not quite up to the standards set by Iceland at Euro 2016. The Aberdeen defence deal with it, with a foul given to the visitors for some pushing and pulling in the box.

A scare for Aberdeen as Ritvar Rugins has a pop from 20 yards and his fierce strike is blocked by goalkeeper Joe Lewis, who looks a bit startled as the ball cannons against him.

Niall McGinn with the delivery and Jonny Hayes gets his peroxide blonde head to it at the near post. There's no real pace on the ball and it's a comfortable save.

The ball boys on the wide expanse of running track are being kept busy in these opening minutes. I hope they are going to take on plenty of water.

Aberdeen force an early corner, with Jonny Hayes making a nuisance of himself...

And we're off... The home side in blue and yellow, Aberdeen in their traditional all red kit.

Should Derek McInnes' side progress to the third qualifying round for the third consecutive year, they will meet Maribor or Levski Sofia.

Slovenians Maribor recorded a goalless draw in Bulgaria last week, with the second leg kicking off at 18:00 this evening.

Maribor have a nasty habit of knocking Scottish sides out, having taken care of Celtic, Hibs and Rangers in recent seasons.

If you want to join in the fun as the action unfolds, get in touch on Twitter or by text.

Will we get a successful Scottish clean sweep this evening?

An apology. BBC Radio Scotland had planned to provide commentary from Latvia but technical problems at the stadium have scuppered that. Did match commentator Scott Davie forget to pack the plug adaptor?

It's not the first hitch on this trip since the charter plane Aberdeen had hired was grounded after a bird strike, meaning a lengthy travel delay yesterday while another aircraft was sourced.

I hope they've worked out a way back...

Aberdeen: Lewis, Logan, Taylor, Reynolds, Considine, Jack, Shinnie, McLean, McGinn, Hayes, Rooney.

Substitutes: Alexander, Burns, O'Connor, Stockley, McKenna, Wright, Storey.

Scott Davie
BBC Scotland in Latvia

"Derek McInnes keeps the same starting line up that won last week's first leg 3-0 at Pittodrie as he looks to close out a third successive year in  the third qualifying round of the Europa League.

"The Dons players will be determined to deliver a much better performance on the road than they did in Luxembourg a fortnight ago and they will largely have to generate their own atmosphere in the 3,200 capacity Olympic Stadium.  "The ground only has a stand on one side with the pitch surrounded by an eight lane running track with a factory on the far side pumping out smoke. With all due respect to Ventspils this is not one the glamour venues."

I'm going to take a 'one game at a time' approach, with the Dandy Dons up first.

Aberdeen lead 3-0 thanks to a good second half showing in the first leg at Pittodrie, with Jayden Stockley, Adam Rooney and Wes Burns on target.

Ventspils may be 13 games into their league campaign but did not look like much of a threat in the first leg.

Image source, SNS

Strap yourselves in for a bumper session of European action, with three Scottish sides all hoping to reach the third round of Europa League qualifying.

Aberdeen take a healthy 3-0 lead to Latvia, while Hearts are well placed at 0-0 going into their home leg against Birkirkara.

It's not looking quite so rosy for Hibernian, who are in Copenhagen chasing a 1-0 loss at Easter Road but that's far from a lost cause.