Livingston

Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

David Martindale has been speaking to the media before Livingston's Premiership game with Dundee this weekend.

Here are the key points:

• After being an advocate of VAR in the past, Martindale says playing without it in the Championship last season was more enjoyable.

• He understands why controversial decisions were made by referees at the weekend but says at some point in the future artificial intelligence (AI) will be used to officiate games.

• Martindale adds: "Not robots, just artificial intelligence. Cameras videoing the game. Cameras making the decisions. There's data that says by 2030 the evolution of AI is going to be much more powerful than the human race."

• Asked if managers will still be needed, Martindale says: "Hopefully not! I can go back on a building site."

• Martin doesn't "pay much attention" to the league table and was unaware a win on Saturday would take Livingston to third place.

• He says being able to hold on to key players from last season has helped the momentum continue into this campaign.

• On Dundee's early-season struggles: "Steven's [Pressley] been in a difficult environment, there's been a massive turnaround in players over the last 12-18 months and they've lost big, big players. And then they lose the manager, so you're walking into a transitional environment, but as the weeks go on, you're gaining continuity within that."

Stuart Barrie
Fan writer

The boos were ringing out at the full-time whistle at Pittodrie on Saturday but it was music to my ears as we got a very decent result against Aberdeen.

The Dons have struggled so far this season but a visit north to the current Scottish Cup holders is always a tough trip.

I did fancy us to come away with something before the game, though.

We've been in decent form, with our defence in particular looking good. Given Aberdeen haven't even scored this season, I guess this had a draw written all over it.

Pre-match it was billed as the battle of the brothers. It was being set up for Tete Yengi on Kusini Yengi and Andrew Shinnie v Graeme Shinnie. Ironically, it was far from an Oasis brotherly love reunion, with a sibling each missing from the teams.

The game itself had an unenviable 'last on Sportscene' aura about it.

There was lots of huffing and puffing with no end product. Our defence was as comfortable as it's been all season, swatting away Dons attacks.

I did have a wee concern about our centre-halves in their vintage years in the Premiership but they have been fantastic this season - especially in the north east.

Second half we pushed forward more which was good to see but never found the goal that would have given us a wonderful win.

We'll just take the delightful draw for another well-won point in the bag and even more for us Livi fans to cheer this season.

Watch the highlights as Aberdeen and Livingston played out a goalless draw in the Scottish Premiership.

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Image source, SNS

Livingston striker Tete Yengi has urged the Aberdeen fans to have a bit more belief in his older brother, Kusini, instead of being "always negative, negative, negative".

Australia striker Kusini has struggled to make an impact with the Dons since arriving from Portsmouth this summer and his performances have drawn criticism from some fans.

"I think it is crazy," Tete Yengi told BBC Scotland. "Clearly he has qualities, otherwise the coaching staff wouldn't have brought him here. I think they should give him a bit more time.

"It is a tough league, even for me. When I first came, it took some time to adapt. I think he needs a bit of time to adapt, but he is only going to get better.

"I just want the fans to give him, put a bit more trust in him, have a bit more belief, a bit more support, instead of always negative, negative, negative.

"As players, we need a positive boost when we are on the pitch to help us run that extra yard or do that extra bit of something. I am sure he will be good - just give him some time."

Kusini was not in the Aberdeen squad for Saturday's Scottish Premiership visit of Livingston.

It meant the brothers were unable to line up against each other in a game that ended 0-0.

"It has been a tough start, but I know my brother the best," Tete added. "He is mentally strong, so I know he will get through this tough period. I have full trust in him."

Livingston end a three-game losing streak in all competitions with a goalless draw away to Aberdeen.

Have your say here.

Read the match report.

Image source, SNS

Livingston manager David Martindale tells BBC Scotland: "I thought it was a fantastic point away from home.

"I don't think the first half we were anywhere near the levels I wanted us to be.

"Second half we were much better, posed a threat on the counter.

"Jerome didn't really have a save to make. We could have nicked it, so I'm fairly pleased with the performance.

"I thought the full group were very good. A special mention to Jerome and the back four. There was a lot to like.

"We've got good team spirit, positive momentum and I think we'll get better as the season goes on."

Image source, SNS

Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin has a fully fit squad. Latvia centre-back Kristers Tobers, who has not played this season due to injury, has returned to training.

Livingston's new loan signings Junior Robinson and Mahamadou Susoho are both in contention for involvement while Macaulay Tait is available after missing out against parent club Hearts.

But Shane Blaney, Cammy Kerr, Cristian Montano and Aidan Denholm are set to remain sidelined.

Image source, SNS

Livingston midfielder Graham Carey believes the squad assembled by "animated" manager David Martindale is capable of challenging for a top-half Premiership finish this season.

After being relegated with St Johnstone last term, Carey was part of a heavy recruitment drive at Livingston over the summer.

Having gone head-to-head with Martindale's teams through the years, the 36-year-old is excited to be on the same side now.

"I've played against Davie's teams for years and I've always enjoyed watching him coach from the sideline," he said.

"He's very vocal and he's very animated, but in a good way. I think he's always managed to get the best out of the squad he has. This year, with the quality we have, if he can do that again then I think we'll be fine.

"With the squad depth we have and the quality we have, I think we've got more than enough to have a successful season, whether that be breaking into the top six or finishing as high as we possibly can, but I think we definitely have enough quality in the team to have a really successful season."

Despite Aberdeen's slow start to the season - losing all three league matches without scoring a goal - Livingston boss Martindale expects a tough test when they face Jimmy Thelin's team on Saturday.

"Aberdeen will be a different team from what they've been previously," Martindale said.

"They've really strengthened within the window and they've brought in some quality players, but we're in a different place now as we club.

"I take it one day at a time and I think everyone is capable of beating everyone in the league."

Image source, SNS

• Aberdeen are unbeaten in five league games against Livingston (W3 D2), and are looking to win back-to-back Scottish Premiership matches against them for the first time since December 2021 (three in a row).

• Livingston have lost their past four league visits to Aberdeen by an aggregate score of 13-2 since a 2-1 victory in April 2022.

• Aberdeen have lost their past seven matches in the Scottish Premiership, conceding 17 goals and scoring just two. They last had a longer losing run in the league with a stretch of 10 between May and September 1999.

• Livingston have lost their past two matches in the Scottish Premiership, and could lose three on the bounce in the competition for the first time since January 2024.

• Livingston are currently on a 19-match winless run away from home in the top flight (D4 L15), which is the longest ongoing run without a victory on the road of any of the 12 current teams in the competition.

Image source, SNS

A sibling rivalry subplot is set to add "a bit of spice" to Aberdeen's tussle with Livingston on Saturday.

The Pittodrie showdown could be a rare occasion of two sets of brothers playing against each other in the same match, with Livi's Tete Yengi and Andrew Shinnie and Dons pair Kusini Yengi and Graeme Shinnie all in contention for involvement.

"I wonder if that's happened previously, two sets of brothers playing against each other," said Livi manager Martindale.

"It just adds a wee bit of spice to the game, and probably adds a wee bit of banter with the Yengis and the Shinnies.

"Especially Shinnie's mum and dad, I think they try and get to a lot of the games and sometimes it's [a choice between] Andrew or Graeme, so they've not got a decision to make this week, they're going to go along to the game.

"Tete's a little bit different because his parents are in Australia but, yeah, it brings a different dynamic and probably a bit of banter through the households."

Image source, SNS

David Martindale hopes Jannik Wanner's loan spell can help the German forward follow Joel Nouble's route to success at Livingston.

Despite having only signed in late June, Wanner was this week sent to second-tier St Johnstone for the season.

Former striker Nouble thrived for Livi after spending the first six months of his three-year spell with the club on loan at Arbroath in the Championship in season 2021-22.

"Jannik's needing as much game time as possible to get up to speed with the demands of Scottish football," manager Martindale said.

"There's a recall clause, and hopefully in January we're kind of using that clause.

"We did something very similar with Joel Nouble. I want him out playing minutes because the quicker we get him adapted to Scottish football, the better it's going to be for Jannik and Livingston."

Martindale is set to include new loan signings Junior Robinson and Mahamadou Susoho in the squad for Saturday's Premiership match at Aberdeen.

"They'll be in contention," he said.

"It was good to get them in last week because it gave us a bit of a free hit with them not having a game on Saturday, so we managed to get some training and coaching time into them and they've been getting to know the group."

Image source, SNS

Summer signing Jannik Wanner has left Livingston to join Championship side St Johnstone on a season-long loan.

The Haiti-born German winger signed a three-year deal with David Martindale's men in June to move from Austrian second-tier side SKU Amstetten.

Wanner, 25, made two appearances from the bench for Livi in the group stages of the League Cup against Brora Rangers and Kelty Hearts.

"It feels very good to be here and I am very happy for the opportunity. I'm looking forward to getting to know the fans and all of the staff. Hopefully we will have a lot of victories together," he told St Johnstone's club media.

Stuart Barrie
Fan writer

The international break provides a good chance to take stock of how things have gone and have a think about what's coming up.

August was as good as I could have hoped for. We had a superb win against Falkirk, a fine draw away to Killie, and no one was really expecting anything from us at Parkhead anyway, were they?

The only one to have any groans about was Hearts at home. That was probably the game I enjoyed the most, ironically, as we more than held our own against the Tynecastle side but they nicked the win at the end.

Played four, with four points on the board. I'll take that.

My thinking is always if you can take 10, maybe nine, points in each rotation of games where the teams all play each other once, then we'll be alright. We are now halfway there.

September's round of league games is a mixed bag. All the teams we play have been both hot and cold, so you can throw the form book out the window.

One constant is we should have a decent chance for three points against Dundee and Aberdeen on the road.

Who knows what Rangers will throw out but we are at home and have punched above our weight there against the Old Firm before.

If we can head into October's international break with at least seven points from seven games then I'll be very happy indeed.

Image source, Getty Images

West Ham defender Junior Robinson is "ready to get stuck in" in West Lothian after joining Livingston on a season-long loan deal.

Robinson, 21, spent last season on loan at National League side Sutton United and could make his Livingston debut against Aberdeen on 13 September.

Robinson is yet to make a senior appearance for West Ham but has featured consistently for their under-21 side.

"The PL2 is obviously quite technical but I think the physicality and the pace of the game will be different," Robinson told club media, external.

"The way we play, we want to get after it and we were similar in PL2, getting after the ball, so I think that will help.

"I'm ready to get stuck in and dig deep."

We asked for your views on Livingston's business in the summer transfer window.

Here's what some of you said:

Christopher: I'm pleased with the business we've done this transfer window. The lads who came in on deadline day come from big clubs with plenty of resources, but Scotland is a different beast. We'll reserve judgement for now, though I've seen enough this season to be confident we'll do well against the bottom half of the table.

William: Livingston has done a good bit of business this summer. It's now down to the coaching staff to get them to gel as an attacking team. Come on Livi.

Derek: Would have been good to see a proven goalscorer although they come at a cost. David Martindale has recruited well and I reckon they'll be fine this season, come on the Lions!

Del: Smart business provided they gel quickly and are willing to roll their sleeves up.

Stuart: Very pleasantly surprised with the signings, getting young talent from Man City, at Livi? Credit to Martindale, the man does serious work during the transfers. I had wanted a new defender and a new striker and he got a defender and someone for midfield. Very interested to see how we play against Aberdeen. They are beatable.

Matthew: Davie has shown his skills in the market again, he knows how to find quality and build a team on a shoestring budget. We know we aren't one of the big boys but we can show what hard work, determination, teamwork and a solid squad can achieve. I for one am looking forward to the season ahead, I fully expect Livingston to give it their all and who knows maybe reach the top six!

Michael: Martindale and Livingston have a really exciting group of players, really looking and feeling optimistic.

Stuart Barrie
Fan writer

Walking down to the game there were Hearts fans everywhere around Livingston. The pubs were full of maroon and white too.

There was three full stands of Jambos in our stadium and a very healthy (for us) home contingent too. A cracking atmosphere was building.

That was respectfully paused as both sets of fans took a moment to think of former Livingston assistant Dougie Imrie in a poignant show of respect for his family.

As soon the game kicked off there was an almighty bellow from both sides and the guy next to me leaned in and said "It's good to be back in the big league". He was absolutely right too.

To roll out the well-worn cliche, the result wasn't what we wanted but there was so many positives to take from this game.

We were first class and the better team in the first half, crowned by another peach from my man of the match Lewis Smith.

Unfortunately, there was another half to play and Hearts came out all fired up and got themselves back into the game. Then, sadly, scored a late winner to burst our bubble.

I saw more than enough against one of the much-fancied, top teams in this league to show we will be competitive, play attacking football when it's appropriate and avoid relegation.

We maybe even a bit higher in the league if we can keep those first-half levels up. Hearts may have Tony Bloom's millions, Jamestown Analytics data and three of our stands, but we have hope, as well as a good few quid in the bank from their visit.

Livingston were active on deadline day with a double loan deal, adding midfielder Mahamadou Susoho from Manchester City and defender Junior Robinson from West Ham.

That took David Martindale's summer signings haul to 15 as Livi attempt to avoid an immediate return to the second tier this season.

So with the window now closed, are you pleased with the club's transfer business? Does it leave the squad in good shape for the season ahead - or is Martindale light in certain positions?

Share your thoughts here.

Image source, Getty Images

Midfielder Mahamadou Susoho has joined Livingston from Manchester City on a season-long loan.

The 20-year-old has played once for Pep Guardiola's side, coming off the bench in a Champions League win at Red Star Belgrade.

The former Spain Under-18 international spent last season on loan at Peterborough, where he made 17 appearances, scoring once.

Watch highlights as Hearts score dramatic late winner against Livingston in the Scottish Premiership.

The Scottish transfer window closes at 23:00 BST on Monday 1 September so there's still time for business to be done.

What do Livi need to do before the window slams shut?

Have your say here