Brown set for early Hibs return

Brown may feature for Hibs at Pittodrie

Hibernian midfielder Scott Brown is in line to make an unexpected return at Aberdeen on Saturday.

The Under-21 international injured his ankle in the Uefa Cup tie against Dnipro on 15 September and it was thought he would be out for two months.

"Scott is a quick healer and he has a determination to get fit because he doesn't want to miss games," said Hibs manager Tony Mowbray.

"He's been training all week and he looks fit, sharp and aggressive."

Brown recently signed an extension on his Easter Road contract and is one of the brightest young stars at the Edinburgh club.

"Scott may have benefited from the enforced rest and will come back very bright," added Mowbray.

"He was doing well before he went over on his ankle. He can play wide on the right and he can play central, he's got a lot of super qualities and he's going to get better.

"So he'll be in the squad and we'll wait and see what formation we will use.

"His injury has given players like Ivan Sproule and Steven Fletcher their chance in recent weeks but we will find it very hard to leave Scott out of the team.

"While I like to give players the encouragement of keeping them in the team when they come in and play well, you have to look at things on their own merits and try and pick a team that will win each game.

"We would look at playing Aberdeen away slightly differently from a game at home against a team that we are perhaps expected to beat.

"You have to play certain formations to try to win games and Aberdeen may be one of those occasions."