Dundee United Manager Jim Goodwin Aims for Continental Debut
Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin has expressed his desire for the team to make their continental debut, as they prepare to face Hibernian in their William Hill Premiership clash. The match, which is set to take place at Easter Road, will be crucial in determining the team’s chances of securing a third-place finish in the league.
According to Dundee United’s official website, Goodwin is eager to bounce back from their disappointing loss to Celtic last weekend. The team has had a good week’s training, and Goodwin believes that they are ready to move on from the defeat. “Yeah, I think so,” he said. “We’ve had a really good week’s training. Obviously, everybody was extremely disappointed with the way the game panned out last weekend. There’s no shame in getting beat off of Celtic, but the scoreline was very unlike us as a group.”
The Dundee United boss also praised his team’s character, stating that they have shown all season that they have a strong mentality. “The group has shown all season the type of characters that are within us,” he said. “We wouldn’t be in the position that we’re in had we not had strong mentality. Celtic are by far and away the best team in the league. It’s not the first time that they’ve put five goals by a team and I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last between now and the end of the season either.”
Goodwin has ruled out describing the match as a ‘must-win’, but has emphasized that the team will be going into the game with a winning attitude. “I wouldn’t say it’s a must-win, but it’s certainly what our attitude is going to be going into it – we want to win the game,” he said. “I’m sure Hibs will be disappointed that their amazing unbeaten run came to an end last weekend, no doubt they’ll want to get back to winning ways as well.”
The Dundee United manager has also acknowledged that his team are the underdogs in the fight for third place, but has expressed his confidence in their ability to compete with the likes of Hibernian and Aberdeen. “I’m pretty sure the majority of people out there will probably see us as the underdogs in this fight for third place,” he said. “I don’t think it would be too much of a surprise to see the likes of Hibs and Aberdeen up there competing at that end of the table – it’s where those kind of clubs should be given the resources and the finances that they have available to them.”
Goodwin has also spoken about the importance of his team’s supporters, who have been in excellent form this season. “The turnout of supporters that we’ve had this year has been tremendous – I think we’ve averaged over 11,000 fans in the home games,” he said. “We’ve also smashed the recent season ticket record for the Early Bird sales this week, so it shows that the supporters are there.”
In terms of team news, Goodwin has confirmed that Ross Graham will miss out, while Lewis Fiorini will return to the squad. The manager has also discussed the club’s transfer business, stating that they will be looking to bring in new players to strengthen the squad.
The Dundee United manager has set his sights on securing European football for the club, which would be a major boost to their finances. “I haven’t been involved in European football at club level before and it’s something that I’m desperate to experience, as are the players,” he said. “You know how much it means to the supporters as well. They would love the chance to support their team abroad somewhere in a competitive game – there’s a lot at stake. It adds to the pressure but it’s exciting.”
With a win against Hibernian, Dundee United could potentially move level on points with their opponents, and Goodwin is confident that his team can make a strong challenge for third place. “If we go and win the game tomorrow, then that all of a sudden puts us level on points with Hibs and I don’t think I would be too surprised if St Mirren got a result against Aberdeen, given the good form that Stephen Robinson’s team is in,” he said. “We’re still in the fight – that’s all we can ask for and we want to try and make sure that we finish the season off on a really positive footing. We don’t want this season just to peter out. We want to stay in the fight for third place and we’ll keep going right to the end.”
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