A clash with title rivals Hibs is the “perfect” match for Dundee United after the disappointment of ending 2016 with a defeat, according to midfielder Stewart Murdoch.
The former Falkirk man, who returned to the Tangerines’ starting line-up after injury in the Hogmanay loss to Dumbarton, explained that it didn’t take long for the United players to move on from their weekend frustrations.
And the Friday night trip to Easter Road offers the chance to ensure that their spell off the top of the Championship table is a very short one.
Murdoch said: “The first thing we said after the game was that going to Easter Road this week gives us the perfect opportunity to win and get back ahead of them straight away.
“We’re looking forward to it.
“This is the kind of game everyone wants to be involved in and we will go there and give it a right good go.
“There is nothing to fear.
“We’ve had two great results against them already this season so there is no reason why we can’t go there and do something similar again.”
He added: “Losing was a sore one but the unbeaten run was always going to end at some point. It was just disappointing it was my first game back in the starting line-up.
“It’s one of those things in football though – you get another game coming quick. We’ve got one on Friday and it’s a great chance to bounce back.”
From a personal point of view, Murdoch is now hoping that his injury problems are behind him.
He said: “It was a long time out but that’s me back to full fitness.
“I’ll be available for selection every week and it’s important I play as many games as I can.”
Murdoch believes that there was nothing deep-lying that was shown up in the Dumbarton defeat.
He said: “It was frustrating we didn’t carve out any great opportunities considering how much possession we had but we’ve still hit the post twice and been close another few times.
“And the goal was one of these that catches the wind and everyone misses it.
“It’s disappointing to lose a game to a sort of fluke goal like that but it happens sometimes.”
