Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has sympathised for the "hard time" faced by Mikey Devlin as the defender was ruled out for another three months.

The 27-year-old requires surgery after damaging an ankle tendon blocking a shot from team-mate Ryan Hedges in training on Tuesday.

Devlin made only his second substitute appearance of the season in the weekend's 1-1 draw with St Mirren.

"I feel hard sorry for the boy - he has had such a hard time," McInnes said.

"It is so frustrating for him and disappointing for him. Mikey has been through a lot in his career and this is just another test for him."

Scotland defender Devlin had made his first appearance of the season as a substitute in the 2-1 defeat by St Mirren in the previous weekend.

"It was totally innocuous," McInnes said. "When you look at the incident, I am surprised at the damage.

"No matter how many times Mikey has been through this, we shouldn't just assume he knows how to deal with it. Sometimes, you have that 'why me?' and you can feel sorry for yourself."