The Premiership’s winter break has kicked in and Dundee can be happy with their work in the Premiership so far.
Tony Docherty took the reins in the summer and has guided his side to seventh place in the table.
Twenty-two points from 18 games is one of the club’s strongest starts to a top-flight campaign this century.
And they head into 2024 with a number of games in hand over teams around them.
They have a 10-point gap over bottom side Livingston, having played three games fewer, and are four points better off than Ross County in 11th with the Staggies one game ahead.
They are now not in action until January 20 when they travel to Kilmarnock in the Scottish Cup.
So, with the Dark Blues taking a breather, Courier Sport takes a look back at Dundee’s first half of the season.
Star Man
It may be too raw for some Dees to mention the loanee that is no longer a loanee at Dens Park, such was his impact.
Owen Beck was superb in his six months as a dark blue.
However, he’s not getting this accolade despite his high performances.
Instead, the star man award goes to Luke McCowan.
The 26-year-old has transformed himself from a moments man to a crucial cog in Docherty’s Dundee machine.
And that’s with adapting to a new position in central midfield.
McCowan has been ever-present in the starting XI in the Premiership this season for the Dark Blues, scoring three excellent goals from range.
He’s the main man at Dens Park these days.
Standout Moment
There are contenders for this one.
We’ve got some last-gasp goals, a pitch invasion at Ross County and a thumping win over St Mirren.
However, that man McCowan is front and centre for the standout moment as well.
After two games, Dundee were yet to win since returning to the top flight when Hearts came to town.
And pre-match, all hell was breaking loose inside Dens Park when the Dark Blues submitted an incorrect team sheet.
They were forced to go ahead with the unintended change to the line-up – Josh Mulligan was supposed to start in central midfield but McCowan’s name was there instead.
And, of course, it was he who made the difference.
Zander Clark was caught in no man’s land after a mix-up at the back from the Jambos but McCowan’s finish was far from easy.
He chipped a perfectly-flighted ball over the stricken goalie and into the top corner.
A wonderful goal and a key first win for Docherty and his side in the top flight.
Signings
Beck has already been mentioned, a superb pick-up in the loan market. The only disappointment is he hasn’t stayed around longer.
Otherwise, the transfer business at Dens Park this summer has brought far more hits than misses.
The first signing of the summer, Joe Shaughnessy, has brought a real assurance to the backline, playing every minute and seemingly has crossballs magnetically attracted to his head judging by the amount of clearances he makes.
Overall Trevor Carson has been a big signing, though he’s faltered a couple of times in recent weeks.
Malachi Boateng has anchored the midfield with aplomb, Amadou Bakayoko has been a strong presence in leading the line and Ricki Lamie has brought real Premiership experience at the back.
The excitement in the summer came from the two Mexican arrivals, Antonio Portales and Diego Pineda.
The latter will go down as one of the misses, having failed to make an impact so far.
However, the former has been impressive. Portales has shown consistently strong performances in defence with two lengthy injuries the only downside so far.
Zach Robinson has brought some goals, though he’s had to content himself with a place on the bench, while Charlie Reilly was been a useful impact sub and Aaron Donnelly has settled in well at the back in recent weeks.
Mo Sylla hasn’t been able to shift Boateng from midfield but has shown up well when he’s got a chance, showing his abilities as a strong ball-winning midfielder.
Scott Tiffoney, meanwhile, hasn’t had the kind of influence that was hoped for after impressing so much at Partick Thistle last season.
And in the miss category you can include Marcel Lewis, who hasn’t played a minute since signing on loan from Burnley, and Jon McCracken, whose short stint in goal ended after Carson’s arrival.
Where to Improve
Getting games on at Dens Park would be a start. Though, Docherty has little say over the weather or the state of the pitch.
Defensively, Dundee have impressed at times – seven league clean sheets tells that story.
They have, though, regressed a little recently with 13 goals conceded in the last six.
Getting back to their earlier form will keep them in the division, no doubt.
What can push them on beyond that is by becoming more of a goal threat at the other end. Particularly when it comes to strikers.
Bakayoko has five league goals, Robinson has two and Zak Rudden also has two. Of the Dark Blues’ 22 league strikes, that accounts for 41% of their goals.
Set-pieces have been hugely important this term, Shaughnessy’s four goals attest to that.
So upping their goals from open play, and in particular from their strikers, will be a major benefit.
Overall Grade – B+
For a newly-promoted team, it’s been a very good start to life at the big table for Dundee.
Offer the Dark Blues seventh spot and just three points off the top six at the start of the season, they’d say ‘I’ll take that, thanks very much’.
But there have been points thrown away – St Johnstone and Motherwell in particular – so things could have been even better.
It’s only a good start, though. They still have 20 games to go and will miss one of their key men in Beck.
Work still to be done but it’s been a very decent six months at Dens Park.
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