Lee Johnson reckons Ryan Porteous has to match his "fire in the belly" with "ice in the head" as the Hibs boss prepares his men for a trip to face Aberdeen.
Porteous was at the heart of controversy when the teams last met in September after he won the penalty, which saw Dons defender Liam Scales dismissed, and turned the game in Hibs' favour. Pittodrie boss Jim Goodwin accused Porteous of "blatant cheating" during his post-match interview which resulted in a lengthy SFA ban and will see him watching from the stand during Friday night's Scottish Premiership match at Pittodrie.
The Scotland defender has a history with the side form the Granite City as he was sent off in Hibs' last trip to the north-east in March for hauling down Ross McCrorie in the penalty area. The Dons were 3-1 winners that day before the scores were reversed at Easter Road six weeks ago. And Johnson expects there to be an "edge" around the game but believes his players can handle the pressure of performing in that environment. He said: "There was a lot of controversy that surrounded that game for a number of reasons so I think naturally that will bring a little bit of edge to the game.
"But as footballers and lads, what do you want? You want to perform in these environments, you want to do your best to win football matchers in these environments and on the back of a really good win against St Mirren we go up there with a lot of confidence.
"I haven't managed at Pittodrie before but a lot of these boys have had the experience of playing there. I think Ryan got sent off there last year.
"I don't know how the fans will respond but I do know our fans will be fully behind us - the travelling contingent have been outstanding from the first game."
Johnson admits that he has held talks with Porteous about how he can help handle situations where he's in the spotlight and the Easter Road boss knows starting well will be a key catalyst for the 23-year-old on Friday night. Only a point separate the two clubs in the table with three games remaining until the World Cup break.
"I think it's a really interesting part of his development," the Easter Road boss added. "We have talked a lot about Ryan's leadership and qualities and we want to keep developing his resilience, mental strength and that ability to be calm.
"He is a player that plays with a lot of fire in the belly and what comes with that is the need for the ice in the head. If he can start the game well and we perform in the right way to suit his attributes, I'm sure he will be fine."
Goodwin saw a potential eight match ban downgraded on Monday. The Aberdeen manager will now serve the second of an initial three-match ban against Hibs, with another two games suspended should he repeat the offence again before the end of the season.
When asked whether it was right that there was some consequence to his comments, Johnson said: "Listen, it's not my place to say. The rules are there for a reason. The SFA have those committees to discuss moments like that. I have been on the receiving end of that myself, by the way, down in England.
"And it's a passionate game. We all care about the game. There's a right and a wrong way to do it but I'm not the man to judge that."
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