Captain Willo Flood among Dundee United departures

Willo Flood and Thomas Mikkelsen helped United reach the play-offs but they missed out on promotion

Captain Willo Flood is among a group of players leaving Dundee United, the Championship club have announced.

Flood, 33, exits along with fellow midfielders Jordie Briels, Paul Quinn and Grant Gillespie.

Defenders Bilel Mohsni, Mark Durnan and Cammy Ballantyne and forward Emil Lyng also depart.

Five other players, including Anthony Ralston, Thomas Mikkelsen and Harry Lewis, return to their parent clubs following loan spells.

Right-back Ralston had been on loan from Celtic while forward Mikkelsen started a second spell at Tannadice after being loaned by Ross County.

Goalkeeper Lewis returns to Southampton while midfielder Craig Slater and left-back Brandon Mason return to Colchester and Watford, respectively.

United say "discussions continue with other players".

Mikkelsen and Ralston scored in the first leg of the Tangerines' Premiership play-off semi-final against Livingston, who prevailed in the tie 4-3 on aggregate.

Flood was sent off in that first leg and as a result was suspended for the second encounter. The Irishman was in his fourth spell at United, having returned to the club from Aberdeen and featured previously for Celtic, Middlesbrough, Cardiff and Manchester City.

Manager Csaba Laszlo commented: "I would like to thank each of these players for their efforts in the United shirt.

"I wish them all the best for the future. We are well along the road in the process to improve the squad for next season and fans should expect updates on this soon."