Dundee United are far too erratic for my liking this season.
We might have bemoaned some of the football on offer last term but at least there was a consistency in performance in that Tangerines outfit.
It’s clear to see what happens when that disappears.
Despite picking up seven points from their previous three league games, Saturday’s reverse at St Mirren shows clearly this entire season could very well be one long struggle.
I said a few weeks back the mentality in the squad has to be one of a team in a serious relegation battle and their only aim between now and the turn of the year is to ensure they are not bottom.
Because despite that seven points out of nine, United never opened up any gap on the foot of the table.
Indeed, after one defeat they are now three points adrift.
That doesn’t seem like much but when you’re bottom it is a real worry – things don’t go their way this weekend and suddenly it is six points and that gap looks like a chasm.
We saw last season with Dundee and St Johnstone once they got detached they just couldn’t buy a win – United want to avoid that at all costs.
Liam Fox
I do still think they are going in the right direction under Liam Fox.
He is still learning on the job really, a new manager at this level.
He’ll be learning new things every minute and will already be wishing he’d done something differently in Paisley.
Fox has got a reaction out of the players but they have to keep that up.
The team has shown this season they are capable of getting out of trouble but they must demonstrate that on a much more consistent basis.
Simple defending
I would like to see a change in the way the defence is set up, however.
The back three system they are using now with two full-back-type defenders either side of Ryan Edwards is a risky one.
To cut their erratic nature I always feel things should be made as simple as possible – a back four and keep the spaces between players as tight as you can.
Make yourselves hard to beat every week and work your way out of trouble.
There’s a lot of pressure on Edwards in this system, he has to ensure the two next to him stay next to him.
They also have to patrol the full-back areas and that’s where there is benefit in the system.
But there are a lot of moving parts and that can be a downfall to a team struggling for confidence, fighting at the foot of the table.
I’m not saying these players can’t play this system but I think it’s a brave move.
One I’d prefer to see used when United are much further up the table.
Motherwell
I don’t expect to see a change for Motherwell this weekend, however.
But that is a dangerous game to me.
’Well have looked good under Stevie Hammell but you still don’t really know what you are going to get from them week to week.
They are, though, more than capable of leaving United in major trouble with a win at Tannadice.
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