Dundee head to Brechin today as preparation for competitive action hots up.
Steven Pressley wants to see more from his side than he saw at Arbroath with conditions, hopefully, more conducive to good football.
He’s keen to see the Dark Blues step things up in terms of performance and will also have the opportunity to see more of his new signings before facing Airdrieonians in the League Cup next Saturday.
So what should Dundee fans heading to Glebe Park expect to see?
New faces
Last week at Gayfield saw a start for Paul Digby in central midfield while Drey Wright and Emile Acquah got 30 minutes in the second half.
Wright endeared himself to the big away support that day by scoring with his very first touch direct from a corner kick.
Tommy McDermott scored the second goal that day, featuring as a trialist, but has since returned to Burnley.
Not able to feature at Gayfield was Bulgarian international defender Plamen Galabov.
He had to make do with a training session on the Gayfield pitch before the match and then took on a watching brief from the stands.
Dundee fans can expect a first look at him in action after he joined on a free transfer from Israeli club Maccabi Petah Tikva.
Also ready to make his first appearance is Brentford loanee Tony Yogane.
He joined the Dee on a season-long loan after watching on at Arbroath last weekend.
The exciting winger has been given a good talking up by boss Pressley and will be keen to make a positive first impression at Glebe Park.
It’s expected he’ll be restricted to 45 minutes of action with Acquah and Galabov in similar shape.
Latest capture Ashley Hay is also expected to be involved.
Clark Robertson
Pressley hopes to see experienced defender Clark Robertson at Brechin after he missed the trip to Arbroath with injury.
A minor jarring of the knee kept him out with the Dark Blues keen to take no risks.
It was initially hoped he’d be back in training on Monday but it appears the issue has taken a little longer to ease off.
Charlie Reilly, of course, will be absent after breaking his collarbone at Arbroath.
Will Dundee’s Mexican trialists play at Brechin?
Dundee are currently running the rule over three Monterrey youngsters with the view of more loan deals.
Jorge Landeros, Jose Urias and Oscar Soto have been training with the Dee for a couple of weeks now.
They didn’t have international clearance to feature at Gayfield.
However, that has now come through and Pressley will get the opportunity to see the young Mexicans in action.
“I believe it’s the case that our Mexican players can feature in the game at the weekend,” the Dundee head coach said.
“It took them four or five days to really adapt to the speed of the training.
“Also, for them, the time difference is a big change, especially as a younger player.
“But they’ve shown in the last couple of days some flashes of quality.
“It’s been good to see them first hand. Whether we retain any of them, I’m unsure at this stage, it’s very early.
“But they’ve certainly begun to adapt and began to show more of themselves.”
The first match of pre-season last week was an opportunity to give a number of youth players a taster of first-team action.
Michael Hunter played 90 minutes while Chase Scott, Tobias Davies-Browne, Ethan Crombie, Ashton Leiper, Wallace Baird and Ryan Bland all came off the bench.
Crombie and Bland are just 16-years-old.
While there will still be chances for a couple of youngsters, the first-team squad has since been bolstered and could see as many as six more senior players available for Pressley.
That will mean fewer chances for the development players to impress as Pressley puts the final on-field preparations in place before competitive action kicks off in seven days’ time.
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