No club in British league football has conceded fewer goals than Dundee United’s meagre tally of four.
But in-form goalkeeper Jack Walton insists the entire side deserve to share the plaudits.
The Tannadice loan star made a sensational save to deny Lewis McGregor as United claimed another crucial 2-0 victory over Airdrie on Tuesday night.
It was an 11th clean sheet in 17 appearances for the on-loan Luton Town man, with the Tangerines’ goalkeeping woes of last season now a distant memory in light of Walton’s presence and reliability.
Boss Jim Goodwin stated this week that United were “lucky to have” the ex-Barnsley man.
However, Walton has sought to redirect the praise towards his teammates.
“I’m a goalkeeper who takes a lot of pride in keeping the ball out of the net — but it is something we are massive on as a team,” he told Courier Sport. “That starts from the front. The whole team has been excellent defensively.
“The two full-backs have been unbelievable defending in wide areas, the midfielders have been great; right up to the strikers and how they set the press further up the pitch.
“It is a collective achievement as a team, and I’m happy to play my part.
“The gaffer has instilled a desire to keep clean sheets. The centre-halves are throwing themselves in front of things, making massive blocks. That comes down to mindset. That’s the drive we have.”
Relationships
That immediate structure and stability is all the more impressive given the scale of the summer rebuild, with Walton’s communication pivotal to the excellent rapport with his defenders.
He added: “I lost my voice a bit on Tuesday night — so I’ve no problem being vocal. Whether it’s 0-0, 2-0 or 6-0, I want my clean sheet!
“No, we’ve gelled really well. We’ve all built really good relationships, on and off the pitch. That’s a massive part of it. But we’ll just carry on doing what we are doing and move on.
“You are only ever as good as your last game, and that’ll be a tough one on Saturday (Inverness).”
Winning ugly
And Walton reckons United’s win in North Lanarkshire reaffirmed their ability to grind out results, even when not reaching the scintillating levels of their 6-0 and 5-0 triumphs over Arbroath and Partick Thistle.
“Midweek was a different sort of game from the previous two — but I just think that shows the character we have in the dressing room,” added Walton.
“We can win in different ways. We’ve shown that throughout this season; for example, up in Inverness when we scored in the last minute, with 10 men.
“Sometimes we might get four, five, six goals. But that’s not happening every week. We know that and you’ve got to be capable of winning in different ways.”
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