Paul Paton believes his move to St Johnstone is “best for Dundee United and best for me”.
Paton, whose transfer across Tayside on a two-year deal was confirmed yesterday, admitted that being told by United chairman Stephen Thompson he was free to find another club a year before his contract was due to end was “bitterly disappointing”.
But he appreciated it was a financial not football decision.
And, after enduring the trauma of a relegation campaign at Tannadice, Paton is now looking forward to a fresh start at McDiarmid Park.
“I’m absolutely delighted to get my future sorted out,” he said.
“Obviously it isn’t nice to be pulled into an office and told you’re not wanted any more.
“It was bitterly disappointing because I was fully expecting to stay there for next season.
“But it was down to financial decisions and I can understand that.
“I think it’s best for Dundee United that I’ve gone and best for me as well.
“It’s good to get a fresh start after what happened last season.
“Nobody wants relegation on their CV, I played there for three years and it was a huge disappointment.
“I loved my time at Tannadice, I felt a big part of the club there and was proud to be the captain for a spell last season.
“So the way it has worked out wasn’t the way I ever wanted to leave there, but that’s the way it was.
“As a footballer you want to feel wanted and that’s why I’ve come to St Johnstone.
“The gaffer here was quick to tell me he wanted me and that was a massive factor.
“I had a few other clubs down south interested but after speaking to the manager I was only ever going to come to St Johnstone.”
Paton is expecting a fight just to get into the Saints starting line-up, after the Perth men finished fourth in the league last season.
The midfielder would have had no qualms about trying to get the Tangerines back into the Premiership next season.
But, after he was told he could leave, staying in the Scottish top flight was Paton’s priority.
And the first challenge for the Northern Ireland international is proving his worth to a new manager.
“I don’t expect to just come in and get into the team straight away because there are lads here who have been doing well for a number of years,” Paton said.
“So I’m going to have to fight to get in the team but that’s something I’m looking forward to.
“Hopefully I can add to things here and we can have another successful season.
“I’ve played against the lads plenty of times and have always been really impressed by them.
“You can see their experience, they were always a hard team to face.
“Nobody knows that better than Dundee United because they seemed to beat us all the time for a while.
“The manager has them very well organised, they play good football and with their experience they see games out well.
“I’m really looking forward to getting started and I like the fact I’ll be going into a dressing-room of experienced, successful players.
“The club has done brilliantly over the last few years, they’ve been a fixture in the top six and have been a really good side.”
Paton missed out on a place in Michael O’Neill’s squad for the Euros in France but he’s determined to add to his collection of caps during the World Cup qualifiers.
He said: “Staying in the Premiership was important to me because of the international squad.
“I have been in a lot of squads but only have three caps, so I’d like to add to that in future.
“It’s going to be difficult to break back into the squad for Northern Ireland but I’ve got a much better chance than I would playing in the Championship.”
Paton has had knee problems in the past but passing a medical with Saints wasn’t an issue.
“My knee is fine,” he pointed out. “I had scans on it before I signed and everything is good.
“It was important that everything came back fine but I was always confident that would be the case.
“I just want to get started now and get on with pre-season when we’re back in.”