Derek McInnes has urged his Aberdeen players to "get their hands dirty" – or miss out on Europe.
The Dons boss watched his side slip to their first away defeat since the Betfred Cup Final agony at the start of December in the 2-1 loss at Hearts on Saturday.
The reverse, coupled with Kilmarnock’s 5-0 win over Hamilton, saw the Rugby Park club leapfrog McInnes’ men into second place.
It means Aberdeen are now out of the European spots in fourth.
And McInnes has called on his stars to work like never before in a bid to again qualify for the Europa League .
He told the Evening Express : "For the first time this year it is going to be a struggle to meet the points (target) that we set ourselves.
“We set ourselves targets at the start of the season to at least get to cup finals and make sure we qualify for Europe as quickly as possible.
"It is still in our hands to do that, but we will certainly have to get our hands dirty and work extremely hard to get those victories that guarantee that.”
Scott McKenna lays it on line to Aberdeen stars as Dons face make-or-break fortnight
McInnes added: “To lose that game from a winning position is the most disappointing part of it.
“We have been to tougher venues against better teams and managed to see out a victory once we went in front.
“That is the disappointing thing."
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