Motherwell

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Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou tells BBC Scotland: "The win is important but the performance was more important because we needed to raise it from the other day [against Livingston]. It wasn't good enough.

"Many other times, had we delivered that performance, we would not have won the game. We might as well have lost it. Today was much better, much more controlled and dominant.

"The first half we were in full control, and it opened up a little. They tried to be man-to-man orientated. The second goal killed the game off a little and then we had good defensive structure at the end.

"I'm pleased with most of them. [Tawanda] has been decisive and scored some very important goals. That's what he's here for, he plays up front. We try to get him in good positions. He just needs to make sure he's there.

"I'm not overly concerned with any of [the injuries] but we'll have to see tomorrow and Friday. If for some reason, one is not ready to play on Saturday, we have a lot of good players in the squad.

"The three points we got at Livingston - we didn't do enough to deserve them. There have been other performances where we have deserved the points more. It's about us being better and more efficient and we are working on that."

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• Motherwell have won their past two home games against Dundee United in the Scottish Premiership, with those games seeing a combined 12 goals (3-2 in May 2023, 4-3 in December 2024).

• United have only won one of their past six away league visits to Motherwell (D1 L4), a 2-1 victory in April 2023.

• Motherwell's last home league game was a 2-1 defeat to Falkirk – ending their eight-game unbeaten run at Fir Park in the Scottish Premiership (W4 D4).

• United remain unbeaten in their four away league games this season (W1 D3), last going five without defeat on the road in the Premiership in October 2021.

• United's Jim Goodwin has lost seven of his 17 Scottish Premiership games against Motherwell as a manager (W5 D5), only losing more in the competition against Rangers (14), Celtic (11), and Hibernian (9).

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Goalkeeper Aston Oxborough is out of the Motherwell squad with a hand injury. Long-term absentees Sam Nicholson, Filip Stuparevic (both knee), Eseosa Sule, Jordan McGhee (both thigh) and Zach Robinson (Achilles) remain sidelined.

Dundee United remain without Ross Graham and Max Watters (both hamstring). Isaac Pappoe (knee) is out long term.

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Motherwell midfielder Callum Slattery is determined to build on a late match-winning assist on his return from injury.

The 26-year-old came off the bench and set up Elijah Just's stoppage-time winner at Livingston on Saturday after two months on the sidelines.

Motherwell host Dundee United on Wednesday night and Slattery said: "First and foremost, it's nice just to be back with the group.

"Then to come off the bench and make an impact, that's the plan when you come off the bench, no matter what.

"If you've been out injured or you've been fit the whole time, you want to make an impact in games no matter what.

"So I think just because I've had an injury, once it's behind me, it's behind me.

"I just had a small knock in training that I wanted to be cautious with. So that's what we did.

"I wouldn't say it was a worry. It was just more precaution and making sure everything was right before rushing back.

"I just want to concentrate on playing football, playing well and helping the team win games."

Caleb Akpo-Young
BBC Sport Scotland

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Motherwell boss Jens Berthel Askou has been speaking to the media before his side's meeting with Dundee United at Fir Park on Wednesday night.

Here are the main points from his press conference:

• Goalkeeper Aston Oxborough has picked up an injury, with the club assessing the extent of it. Askou revealed "he won't be able to play the coming games", with fellow keeper Mathew Connelly being recalled from his loan spell at Airdrieonians.

• Askou acknowledged the strong squad at his disposal and says he has "many players who could easily start" for him.

• He is relishing the "big game" against United and says Motherwell have ambitions to to finish above the Tannadice side.

• Despite victory at Livingston last weekend, the Dane did not feel Motherwell's performance "was very good" and says performance levels "need to be a lot better" going forward.

• Askou discussed the importance of league positioning but says it "means most" after 33 games when the league splits in half.

• On Callum Slattery's return to the side: "He's a very good player and he's been extremely important to this team for many years now. You can see his intensity and his passion and drive to come in and change a game. It's something we've been missing and his qualities so it's great to have him back."

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

Elijah Just: The New Zealander has been a revelation for Motherwell. Sealed the win away to Livingston with a fine strike high into the net deep in stoppage time.

Watch Motherwell great James McFadden praise the influence of Elijah Just and Callum Slattery following the Fir Park side's late win at Livingston.

Watch Sportscene analysis of the penalty incidents in Motherwell's 2-1 victory at Livingston

Watch highlights from Motherwell's dramatic victory at Livingston in the Scottish Premiership.

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Stephen Craigan expects Motherwell's win over Livingston to "galvanise" the squad after a difficult spell.

The former Well defender was pleased to see a "ruthless" side to the Fir Park club as they picked up their second win of the Premiership season and expects them to kick on from the victory.

"I think, first of all, they probably just edged the game," Craigan told BBC Scotland.

"Clearly their style of play is something that catches your eye. They were very efficient in front of goal. They only had two shots on target and they got two goals.

"I think they probably have had more chances or better chances in other games and haven't taken them so I think that will please the manager that they've been ruthless with the opportunities that they've had.

"They played okay. I'd imagine they'll play better. I don't think the pitch helped. Sometimes you come here to Livingston and it's watered quite a lot, it wasn't watered at all so clearly Livingston were aware of Motherwell's style of play and they've tried to combat that a little bit.

"I think the pitch was a bit sticky, there wasn't a lot of pace in the game so the ball didn't really run as fast as what it should do on a surface like this. So that probably played into the hands of Livingston and slowed Motherwell up a little bit.

"But it's just about finding a way to win a game of football. If you're playing well and you're always getting plaudits and you're not getting points, sometimes the players can become a little bit disheartened and the message from the manager dulls down a little bit.

"I think a win sometimes just galvanises everyone again so I think that's the biggest thing they'll take from the game."

We asked for your views on Motherwell's 2-1 win against Livingston.

Here's what some of you said:

Mark: Elijah Just take a bow! What a game from the guy and what a goal! First half of the game was questionable but the turnaround for the second 45 minutes was outstanding. Dreadful performance from the referee however, the standard of officiating in Scotland needs changing.

James: Not our finest performance, but a much needed win. Callum Slattery made a big difference, Just was tremendous. Take the win any day of the week.

Ross: Another match, another baffling VAR decision. The operators are determined to ruin the product on display by their inability to implement it correctly. Thankfully, justice was done in the end otherwise the fallout would be much worse. A much welcomed three points.

Brian: Not at our best by any means at all but three points at last, Just was immense, not for the first time this season, he took the game by the horns and ran the show.

Grant: Was a tough watch at times but we got the three points, great to have players back from injury and hopefully we can build on the result with Dundee United in midweek and the cup game on Saturday.

John: Massive result, as great performances and no results builds pressure on everyone. Beat United and St Mirren this week and it could create a great season. Come on the 'Well!

Taylor: First half was the worst I have watched this season and the second half against Falkirk was hard to beat. Livingston will be gutted as they were the better team. Motherwell are playing great football until it reaches the final third but unfortunately it's results that matter and we haven't had enough wins. It's frustrating watching us struggle against recently promoted teams. Wednesday will be a good test before a tough semi-final. Jens Berthel Askou drop Calum Ward, too many bomb scare moments, and give Aston Oxborough game time.

Charlotte Cohen
BBC Sport Scotland

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Elijah Just says Motherwell are "already thinking about Wednesday" following their dramatic victory over Livingston.

After being denied by the offside flag, Just scored the winning goal for Jens Berthel Askou's side in West Lothian to move the Fir Park club up to sixth in the Premiership table.

They face Dundee United on Wednesday night before Saturday's League Cup semi-final against St Mirren.

"We're really happy, but already we're thinking about Wednesday and our next fixture," Just said.

"When the games are coming so fast we're just looking at game after game and we have to keep playing well.

"I think we're playing well, but we've left a lot of points on the table so we need to keep working hard. When the results go our way a little bit better I'll enjoy it even more.

"Where we are in the table and the congestion of teams, three points is really important. We will take care of Wednesday and then look ahead to the weekend."

Elijah Just provided a dramatic moment of inspiration as his injury-time winner earned Motherwell a thrilling last-gasp Scottish Premiership win over Livingston.

Read the full match report here.

Have your say here.

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Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou tells BBC Scotland: "A lot of emotions there. We went through a very difficult game. Big credit to Livingston for really making it hard for us.

"They were a threat all the way through and we had to provide two big moments to make sure we won. The first half lacked quality, but we stepped up second half.

"It wasn't perfect, but it became better, and we lifted out quality in the small moments which led to two goals.

"Elijah is a very good player, who has started very well for us, and hopefully that continues. It was good to see Slats [Slattery[ back, we've missed him. There was some moments of light for us today, and the win is massive.

"Every day is a step in the right direction. Every day there are bumps, last week was a bump. Today, there were plenty of bumps but we got over them.

"We need to look at things we can improve, we have to. We had full control in the first 15 to 20 minutes, but we made it open.

"Big credit to Davie and Livingston also deserved something from this game after that performance, but we were sharper in the decisive moments. That decided the game today."

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Three changes to the Motherwell side after their topsy-turvy loss by Falkirk last week.

Liam Gordon and Stephen O'Donnell return to defence, replacing Paul McGinn and Johnny Koutroumbis.

Up top, Apostolos Stamatelopoulos comes in for Callum Hendry, looking to keep up his good goalscoring form after three goals in his past three Premiership games.

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Livingston are set to hand a debut to Joshua Brenet, while Danny Wilson and Lewis Smith are expected to shake off knocks.

But Shane Blaney and Adam Montgomery will miss out and Connor McLennan is likely to sit out the game with a head knock. Cammy Kerr (ankle), Ryan McGowan (illness) and Aidan Denholm (hamstring) remain on the sidelines.

Motherwell have Callum Slattery back in their squad, leaving long-term absentees Sam Nicholson, Filip Stuparevic (both knee), Eseosa Sule, Jordan McGhee (both thigh) and Zach Robinson (Achilles) as the only players missing.

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Motherwell striker Callum Hendry says Motherwell must quickly learn lessons from recent results if they are to make progress.

Jens Berthel Askou's side have received plenty of praise for their easy-on-the-eye style this season, but have dropped 12 points from winning positions in the Scottish Premiership and sit 10th with one win from eight matches.

They face bottom side Livingston on Saturday and Hendry says they must be more ruthless when on top.

"It's a weird one," Hendry said. "I've not experienced it before, where I'm in a team that's playing so well that aren't getting what they deserve.

"The Falkirk game, probably the first 50-55 minutes, we controlled that game. The first half was one of the best halves I've been a part of in terms of football, in terms of style.

"You can blame officials and decisions from the game, but we have to put the game to bed quicker than we did.

"There's a lot of young lads in this team, so it's important that we learn quickly from those games.

"The gaffer's making adjustments, we're looking at it in the meeting room, and I think it will change soon.

"We could pop a team off the park for 75 minutes, they're still going to be there for the last 15. You rarely see teams give up in this league. It's just how we handle that pressure better, because you're not going to batter a team for 95 minutes.

"So it's important we learn how to deal with when we're on the back foot as well, and control games better."

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• Livingston have won just one of their past 14 league meetings with Motherwell (D4 L9), a 2-0 victory in October 2023.

• Motherwell have only lost one of their past seven league visits to Livingston (W3 D3), winning their latest 3-1 in February 2024.

• Livingston's Scottish Premiership games this season have featured more goals (28 – 10 for, 18 against) than any other side.

• Motherwell have lost more points from winning positions in the

• Premiership this season (12) than any other side, losing both of their past two league games despite leading each time.

• Against Falkirk last time out, Tawanda Maswanhise scored his 10th league goal for Motherwell. Aged 22 years and 332 days, he was the youngest player to reach double figures for league goals for the club since Allan Campbell in March 2020 (21y 244d), and youngest non-Scottish player since Henrik Ojamaa in April 2013 (21y 334d).

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Jens Berthel Askou wants Motherwell to sharpen up defensively as he insisted last weekend's controversy against Falkirk would not derail their progress.

The Steelmen led 1-0 at half-time but were denied another first-half goal when Ibrahim Said was penalised for a foul on Brad Spencer after a VAR intervention, despite appearing to simply shield the ball from his opponent.

Motherwell's frustration was compounded when Falkirk turned the game on its head to win 2-1.

Askou was reluctant to divulge details of conversations, but Scottish FA head of referees Willie Collum reportedly apologised to the club over the decision.

The Motherwell boss said: "There are some people in the club who have been in contact and I would say nothing of what I've watched again or have heard from even more clever people than me around the rule book has led me to call Ibby into my office and say, 'I need you to do something else in that situation'.

"I will tell him any day of the week that he should do the same thing. And then we'll just hope that it will go our way next time. I expect it to do."

The defeat means Motherwell have lost 12 points from winning positions in their past six Scottish Premiership matches.

"We can't do anything more about the game than look for patterns, anything recurring that we need to look into," said Askou.

"The bottom line of that is that there are things we cannot control that will sometimes not go our way, and the answer to that is it's not going to stop us going where we want to go. It might set us back a week or create a little bump on the road, but it's not going to stop us.

"And then there are things that we can control and that we have to improve.

"We've conceded in general a little bit too many goals. We are a team that can score goals and create chances, and we will score more goals when we get even sharper.

"The big thing for us is to be even more effective defensively as well. Be stronger and more disciplined, sharper and just better individually and as a group in terms of taking the moments around the game and really look after them and make sure we don't give away more goals than we have to.

"That's something that we have been working on and now we've enhanced that focus during this week."

Motherwell winger Elijah Just admits he was warned to be wary of a move to Scottish football, but has exceeded his expectations with his early-season form.

The New Zealand international joined in the summer from Danish top-flight club Horsens, where Jens Berthel Askou previously managed, and has already made an impact at the Fir Park club with three assists - more than any other Well player - in six league appearances so far.

Askou's side fell to 10th in the table at the weekend after a 2-1 loss against Falkirk but Just believes success is not far away as he adapts to the Scottish game after seeking advice from contacts who have played here.

"Anyone I spoke to kind of said the same thing," the 25-year-old told club media.

"They said to be careful going to Scotland because it may not be best suited to me. I've exceeded my expectations so far in terms of how well we've played, but the most important bit is being effective in getting results.

"I do think the way we're playing is conducive to getting good results, and it's so impressive to see the fans on board. Everyone can feel the belief they have in us, which is a huge help.

"Coming into the start of the season, there were things I had to prove, which was making sure I was working hard and fighting for everything.

"As a smaller player, especially in Scotland, you can't just be the player with the ball. So I'm making a real effort to work hard off the ball and fight to help with what the team needs.

"The players are doing so much hard work at the back to get me in the right positions, so when I get it, I try to be confident. It hasn't been thinking on my part, just enjoying it.

"I think we need to be more ruthless against teams that sit deep. The way we play is dependent on us; if we play well, we don't need much luck to get the job done. We'll always have a good chance.

"There's positive we can pull from each game so far, and we're just a tiny bit away from clicking fully."

New Zealand will play in the World Cup next summer for the first time in 16 years but Just insists his focus for now remains on the Scottish top flight.

"The scope and the magnitude of the World Cup won't hit home until I'm there," he added.

"At the moment, it's not looking too far ahead and just looking after the club games.

"There's a lot of travel involved when it comes to playing for New Zealand, even more now I'm in Scotland. But I'll do whatever to play for my country."