Scottish Premiership match against Aberdeen is on Sunday

Frankie Kent could make his first Hearts appearance in nearly three months against Aberdeen on Sunday. The English centre-back is pushing to step in for the suspended Craig Halkett as the Edinburgh side look to continue their unbeaten start in the William Hill Premiership.

Kent’s last appearance was on 30 August against Livingston, after which he damaged knee ligaments and underwent surgery. He is now fit to return and is in contention for a starting place at Pittodrie, as is the Austrian Michael Steinwender. Halkett will serve a one-game ban after accumulating six yellow cards this season.

“Frankie has been training so he's an obvious one to consider,” Hearts head coach Derek McInnes told the Edinburgh News. “There are other options there like Michael and Jamie McCart, so we have good strength in depth when we have to deal with suspensions. Halkett's ban has come a bit quicker than we would have hoped, but throughout a season you have to deal with that. It's an oppoprtunity for someone else so, hopefully, we land on the right option. We do have a few choices we can call on.”

Hearts gave some players rest during the last 10 days, while others did extra fitness work to ensure they are as sharp as possible. After beating Rangers 2-0 at Ibrox in their first match after September’s international break, and then winning 3-0 at Kilmarnock following October’s international fortnight, Hearts are eager to continue the trend against Aberdeen.

“We haven't done much different to what we did before,” explained McInnes, who admitted that the absences of Halkett and the injured Beni Baningime leave openings for others to fill. “Players got a wee reward of some days off because we try to incentivise that. We had a few days of getting some work done, and a bit more work into some than others.

“The lads who have played a lot of the games have a good level of fitness so they benefit more from the break. Then there's another group of players who we need to make sure are getting enough work in. We have to get the balance right with that as we did in previous international break.

“We have always come out of international breaks and went on to get a positive result. Hopefully, it can be the same this time round. It's a long season. November, December and January are quite challenging with the amount of fixtures, so this was the last wee opportunity to give the players a few days off. With Beni's injury and Halkett's suspension, there are a couple of positions we need to look at ahead of Sunday's game. Ageu has had another 10 days of training, which will do him no harm.”

As a former Aberdeen manager, McInnes knows how away teams can find Pittodrie difficult. However, Jimmy Thelin’s side have just one home win to their name so far this season. Hearts’ last victory away at Aberdeen was more than nine years ago. “You can see the investment in their squad, they've got a huge squad with a lot of good players and good options. That will serve them well amid their European demands,” said McInnes.

“This is one where we need to go and try to attack the game and impose ourselves. We understand it's going to be difficult and there are players who can cause us problems. This fixture normally goes in favour of the home team but that doesn't mean we can't change that.

“We have won at Ibrox this season already and got results at a few difficult away grounds. Pittodrie is, without question, a tough place to play, regardless of the form Aberdeen are in. They have picked up a bit recently and they will take confidence from the [UEFA Conference League] game against Larnaca and their win at Rugby Park. They are a capable team so we need to be aware of that, but I want them to be aware of us on the day.

“There is a sense of frustration and annoyance that we didn't make the most of the last game against Dundee United when we drew 1-1. We've got to own that and move on from it. When that is the case, you hope to just win your next game and claw back two points that maybe you feel you've left out there.”