Dundee United

Tyrone Smith, BBC Sport Scotland

Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin says the success of the club’s legendary class of 1983 reinforces why the current team need to preserve their Premiership status.

This weekend marks the 40th anniversary of United's Premier Division title success under Jim McLean.

Those glory days are a distant memory with United now 10th in the top flight, just one point above bottom club Ross County, who visit Tannadice on Saturday. But Goodwin believes the emotion surrounding the past success can help fuel his side's survival bid.

He said: “I think so, it is a big weekend for the club. The players are aware of the significance of that, albeit we are at the other end of the table now fighting for our lives, when those guys 40 years ago were competing up at the top end to go and win championships.

"It is something that we could only dream of at this moment in time but it does give you an understanding of where you are and what kind of club you are at.

"And for those players, it is a really good message to them, to make them realise they are at one of the biggest clubs in the country, that have got a great history and it probably adds to the importance of the game in terms of why we need to keep this team in the Premiership."

A season-record home crowd of over 10,000 is expected to pack into Tannadice for the game and Goodwin is thankful for the "incredible" support.

Image source, SNS

Tyrone Smith, BBC Sport Scotland

Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin has been speaking to the media before Saturday's crucial Premiership visit of Ross County.

Here are the key points:

• With United just a point above bottom club County, Goodwin says "all games are huge" at this stage of the season.

• On their league position, he adds: "We have to be realistic - we know we are in a relegation dogfight".

• With a crowd in excess of 10,000 expected at Tannadice, Goodwin says it illustrates the magnitude of the game and the size of the club.

• There has been no hangover in training from last weekend's Tayside derby defeat to St Johnstone which stalled United's momentum.

• Goodwin insists nobody at United ever thought County were cut adrift at the bottom, adding that he rates Malky Mackay as one of the best managers in the league.

• The 40th anniversary of United's top-flight title success highlights why they need to keep the team in the top division.

Image source, SNS

Craig Levein has revealed his Dundee United teamsheet used to be leaked on a weekly basis - by owner Eddie Thompson.

Levein, who managed United for three years from 2006, told the BBC's Sacked in the Morning podcast: “I got on fantastically well with Eddie. Once you understand Eddie’s way of trying to have influence on the team selection, him and I would meet every Friday after training.

“Then he would say, 'What’s your team for tomorrow? And we had a situation at Dundee United where the team were doing really well. Every single week on one of the forum sites this guy had the team right.

“He would say on a Friday afternoon, here’s the team for tomorrow and it was bang on every week.

“The only person that knew was Eddie Thompson and he was the owner, so it’s quite a difficult conversation to say to the owner, 'I suspect you have leaked the team.'

“I got so annoyed and I thought to myself, 'I’m going to pull him up on it', but I didn’t, it’s his club.”

Image source, SNS

Image source, BBC Sport

Tyrone Smith, BBC Sport Scotland

For all the positivity and plaudits that have rightly been directed towards Dundee United for their recent upturn in form, last weekend’s loss to St Johnstone was an undoubted set-back to their Premiership survival hopes.

They remain in 10th spot but that defeat, coupled with Ross County’s win over Livingston, means United are now precariously placed just one point above the table-propping Staggies.

Oh, and the two sides go head to head at Tannadice on Saturday, a game which both could probably argue is their most important of the season.

For United, it represents an opportunity to put daylight between themselves and bottom spot. But should they lose, they could find themselves back being the team that is looking up at everyone else, a status they thought they had left behind.

So the stakes couldn’t be higher.

In fairness to Jim Goodwin, he has always hammered home the point his side have achieved nothing yet, and he will be hoping that what happened in Perth was just a blip.

We will perhaps find out if it was at Tannadice on Saturday.

Dundee United face bottom club Ross County at Tannadice on Saturday in a huge relegation showdown.

Jim Goodwin's side are just one point ahead of the visitors, so it's very much squeaky bum time in the survival fight.

Who should be in Goodwin's XI? Choose your men for the job here.

Image source, BBC Sport

Image source, BBC Sport

Ronny Costello, Dode Fox Podcast, external

The Great Escape train had a wee bump in the road on Saturday afternoon. Yet again, though, the referee was centre of attention.

How Alan Muir thought it was a red card for Charlie Mulgrew, I’ll never know. The official line will be he was denying a clear and obvious goalscoring opportunity. Nonsense. I wasn’t convinced at the time and I still don’t think it’s red. The ball is not going towards goal for one, and I don’t think Melker Hallberg would have even got to the knock-on.

United won’t appeal it, given the fact the ban could be extended and with only four games left, it’s probably not worth the risk.

So what do we do when Ross County come calling on Saturday? I reckon we might change to three at the back with Ryan Edwards back in with Loick Ayina and Scott McMann either side. It’s never pretty up against Jordan White so hopefully Ryan is up for the battle!

It's the proverbial six-pointer this weekend, with just one point now between us, Kilmarnock and County.

It’s £10 to get in on Saturday, there should be brilliant backing from the stands and let's hope the players respond and get the three points.

Rory MacLeod insists he's in no rush to leave boyhood heroes Dundee United despite English Premier League interest in the 17-year-old striker. (Football Scotland), external

Charlie Mulgrew will miss Dundee United's key Premiership clash against Ross County after the club opted not to appeal against his dismissal on Saturday. (Courier), external

Read the rest of Tuesday's Scottish gossip.

Image source, BBC Sport

Former Scotland midfielder Michael Stewart disagrees with the decision to send off Dundee United defender Charlie Mulgrew in United's loss to St Johnstone.

"Mulgrew is impeding Hallberg - he lifts his leg and knows exactly what he's trying to do, but there's not a great deal of contact," he said on Sportscene.

"I don't think it's an obvious goalscoring opportunity, and I think a yellow card would have sufficed."

Image source, SNS

We asked for your views on Dundee United's loss at St Johnstone in the Tayside derby.

Here's what you said:

Anon: I have supported DUFC for over 40 years, after Saturday I could give less of a care about them. No bottle, no fight. Beaten at St Johnstone again - a shambles!

G: I think a point would of been a fair result. We had a couple of chances but lacked in finishing. Steven Fletcher’s effort goes in and there would be no complaints. Red card changed the game. Massive game next week v County. Must win.

Colum: Another game where the referee and VAR is the talking point. Daniel Phillips was lucky to stay on the park after a studs-up challenge on Craig Sibbald which Alan Muir didn't even think was a free-kick! Poor defending for the goal, where everyone switched off at the same time. Charlie Mulgrew threw away all his experience by giving a poor referee a poor decision to make.

Is manager Jim Goodwin right to say Dundee United deserved to take a point from the game in Perth?

And what about the red card for Charlie Mulgrew?

Let us know what you think here.

St Johnstone moved away from the back three that was utilised for most of Callum Davidson's reign and kept their first clean sheet in 10 games.

Liam Gordon and Andrew Considine did a good job of keeping the shackles on Steven Fletcher, although they did get lucky when the Dundee United striker rattled the frame of the goal right at the death.

The switch of formation gave the hosts an extra man in attack and that resulted in 17 shots, even if most of those were of the non-threatening variety.

Even when it was 11 v 11, Fletcher was too isolated in the United attack, with Jamie McGrath having a very quiet game amid the crunching tackles and loose passes in a match full of endeavour but lacking in composure and quality.

Image source, SNS

Dundee Utd boss Jim Goodwin told BBC Sportsound: "I don't think we deserved to lose. In the grand scheme of things, a draw would have been fair.

"I knew it would be tight and I always felt the first goal was going to be hugely important. The manner in which we concede is probably what frustrates me most; a long throw-in, we get first contact, then we don't react to the second ball.

"The volley off the bar from Steven Fletcher right at the end was just great technique. If that had gone in, I think it's a fair outcome."

On Charlie Mulgrew's red card, Goodwin says he hasn't seen the incident again but reckons it wasn't a clear goal-scoring opportunity.

"It was very wide," he explains. "Loick Ayina was coming round on the cover as well.

"I don't want to say too much. We'll see on Monday if there are grounds for an appeal or not."

Image source, SNS

Image source, .

St Johnstone: Matthews, Brown, Gordon, Considine, Montgomery, MacPherson, Phillips, Hallberg, Wright, Carey, May.

Substitutes: Sinclair, Murphy, Mitchell, Gallacher, Ballantyne, Bair, Moreland, Mylchreest.

Dundee Utd: Birighitti, Freeman, Ayina, Mulgrew, McMann, Niskanen, Sibbald, Harkes, McGrath, Behich, Fletcher.

Substitutes: Newman, Graham, Djoum, Edwards, Middleton, Fotheringham, Cudjoe, Thomson, MacLeod.

Image source, .

Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin urged St Johnstone to release more tickets for his side's trip to McDiarmid Park on Saturday. (Record), external

Ian Harkes puts talks over a new Dundee United contract on the back burner. (Courier - subscription required), external

Read Saturday's Scottish Gossip

St Johnstone welcome back defender Alex Mitchell after a hamstring injury. Nicky Clark is back running after ankle surgery, and Charlie Gilmour, Chris Kane and Callum Booth are still short of fitness.

Dundee United have Glenn Middleton back in their squad following a hamstring injury while Jamie McGrath has shaken off the injury that forced him off against Livingston. Dylan Levitt (knee), Peter Pawlett (hamstring) and Liam Smith (ankle) remain out.

Image source, SNS

Image source, BBC Sport

Jamie McGrath has scored in each of Dundee United's last three league games, netting what proved to be the winner each time.

The 26-year-old Irish midfielder had an underwhelming first half of the season, like so many of the Tannadice squad, but he is flourishing under Jim Goodwin, who signed him for St Mirren back in January 2020.

McGrath still has a year to run on his contract at Wigan Athletic, who are on their way back down to League One, but if he and Goodwin can help steer United away from relegation trouble then there must be a good chance of the two being reunited again next term.

The last player to score in four consecutive top-flight appearances for United? That would be Johnny Russell in February 2013.

Dundee United defender Kieran Freeman has backed Jim Goodwin to receive the manager's job long-term at Tannadice should he keep the club in the Scottish Premiership.

Under Goodwin's stewardship, United have climbed off the bottom of the league table, and currently sit tenth, only ahead of Kilmarnock in the relegation play-off place on goal difference.

“If the results go against us on one weekend we could be bottom again, so we are far from out of it, but it has been positive these last few weeks and hopefully we keep that going,” Freeman said.

“We have been playing well as a team and have been hard to beat, the clean sheet at the weekend helps and we have been getting more bodies forward.

“The gaffer has got us organised and we are hard to beat, that makes a big difference I think."

When asked if he thinks Goodwin will remain in his post beyond the end of the season, Freeman said: “If we are getting results I think the club will make that decision, obviously I don’t get paid to make those decisions but if we keep winning, I don’t see why he wouldn’t.

Image source, SNS

Although only goal difference is keeping Dundee United out of the relegation play-off spot, they have a 65% chance of guaranteed safety this season, according to data specialists Neilsen's Gracenote.

Jim Goodwin - United's third manager of the season - has hauled them off the bottom and heading in the right direction. Can they make it four wins in a row on Saturday?

Read more: Who will suffer Scottish Premiership relegation?

Image source, SNS