Dundee United boss Csaba Laszlo has admitted that he finds himself facing his biggest challenge in football.
The Hungarian was left stunned by the Tangerines’ 6-1 hammering by Falkirk on Saturday and it is now his daunting task to try to lift his bruised and battered players in time for Saturday’s trip to Dunfermline.
He admitted the defeat by the Bairns felt like an “execution” and a “punch in the face,” as well as being a “nightmare” that left him in a state of “shock.”
Laszlo revealed he had never suffered a result as bad as that, neither during a nine-year playing career in Romania, Hungary and Germany nor a long managerial career at both domestic and international level.
Asked if he was now facing the greatest challenge of his coaching career, he replied: “Yes.”
He added: “I don’t even remember anything like that as a player.
“As a player on the pitch I tried to keep stability in my team.
“As a manager, I have never lost like that.
“You learn – you learn a lot.
“It was like a nightmare but, actually, it was reality and not just a nightmare.
“I think every reaction we show now will be recorded, definitely.
“This was really like, let’s say, an execution.
“Normally this is not what we want to say and this is not the face of the team.”
Laszlo has, understandably, rounded up his players for a post-mortem meeting.
The message delivered was that United may be down but they are not yet out of the Championship title race.
He said: “We have talked internally about it.
“We have to take the criticism then fight back. We have to show our true face.
“There are 16 games to go and in those matches we must really show that we want to be in the Premier League.
“OK, we have had two really big punches in the face and lost six points against first St Mirren and then Falkirk.
“But I am always positive and that’s not about hiding anywhere. I just want to look forward.
“When it goes like this, you have to ask the question: ‘Why?’
“It is not correct to hide behind injuries because we played a good game against Brechin without these boys.
“No, what is important for everybody – me, the players and the staff – is that we are Dundee United and we have our pride.
“We also have to say to our fans, the Arabs, that it was a really bad day.
“We have played, for two months, some good football. It was not perfect but it was good football.
“We have to bounce back and fight back.”
The hope is that the Falkirk loss will be seen in hindsight as a freak result, with the United gaffer adding: “Everybody has to understand it happens maybe once every 10 years.
“It happened to us.
“The first 20 minutes were OK. We went in front but after that it was like what happens when you switch off the light and you stay in the dark.
“This is what I don’t understand.
“Physically and mentally we were OK.
“We were 1-0 up and we had a fantastic support behind us.
“Then you are surprised by what happens.
“Usually with my teams, if we score the first goal we win 1-0 – certainly 80% of the time.
“In this case we went down and we also gave away goals.
“You can’t win every game and I am saying all the time that any team can lose a match.
“But how you lose is really important.
“We didn’t just lose badly – we didn’t show the best attitude.”
Laszlo is demanding a vast improvement when United head to Fife to face the Pars on Saturday.
“I want to see a reaction,” he said.
“This is not just about the players – it’s about everybody.
“I have to say that the fans, the board and the chairman were not on the pitch but they still suffered.
“So we have talked and we agreed that this is not what Dundee United is about as a club. This is not what we want.
“I have come here not just to get the team back up to the Premier but to stabilise and look forward.
“So for me it was like a shock.”
United expect to bring back Mark Durnan to the heart of their defence this weekend but the wait for Stewart Murdoch’s comeback will go on.
Laszlo said: “Durnan will be OK but Murdoch, even if he is not injured, won’t have the (match) fitness.”
