There is no getting away from it – Saturday at St Johnstone is a huge game for Dundee and Neil McCann.
And he’ll know it.
It’s been a terrible start to the season.
Yes, the league is only two games old but when you’ve had two bad losses to lower league teams in the cup in front of your own fans you can’t say that it’s too early for the pressure to be on.
Supporters aren’t daft. Dundee’s will get right behind their team at McDiarmid Park on Saturday but they know – as does Neil – that performances like the one against Ayr United just aren’t good enough.
Neil has had three transfer windows and this is definitely his team now.
Ideally, you want to give new signings time to bed in but for a match like the St Johnstone one there is no scope for experimenting.
He needs to pick his best players who he can trust, put round pegs in round holes and hope he gets the win that would give him something to build on.
I don’t know what the story is with Darren O’Dea and Steven Caulker. But if they are fit and there aren’t personal or disciplinary issues then they would provide the sort of backbone for your team that you be looking for at a time like this.
They’re both leaders, who have a physical presence and a wealth of experience.
It’s a massive, massive game – even this early in the season.
If Dundee fold again like they did against Ayr, it really won’t look good.
* I see that Greg Stewart has been linked with a move to Kilmarnock.
If I was Neil McCann I’d be going to my board and saying, ‘we need to bring him back to Dundee.’
For me it’s a no brainer – for Greg and Dundee.
It’s clear to everyone that up front is the biggest area of concern for the team and Dens is where Greg played his best football.
It didn’t work out for him at Birmingham and the loan to Aberdeen wasn’t a great success either.
Sometimes a club and a player just fit together.
He’d get a hero’s welcome before he even kicked a ball. The fans would love it.
Dundee were linked with Lawrence Shankland. Even though he did well at the weekend he isn’t proven at the top level, which Greg is.
I know which one I’d rather sign.
For me, it’s a transfer that ticks every box.
* Steven Gerrard has made a lot of common sense signings.
Kyle Lafferty is another.
Gerrard knows he can score goals in the Premiership and deal with playing for a club like Rangers.
They still have a lot to prove this season but you can’t fault what Gerrard has done so far.
At Celtic, I’m not surprised to see Celtic linked with Scott McKenna.
Ideally, if Dedryck Boyata is moved on you’d want an experienced centre-back to take his place but Brendan Rodgers is the type of manager who will back himself to mould a young player.
McKenna is strong, quick and has been one of the best centre-backs in Scotland recently.
That’s more important than age.
