A St Johnstone player is yet to score a goal in the Premiership this season.
But the man who has come closest is confident that wrong will be righted after the international break.
Glenn Middleton forced a good save out of Jak Alnwick after he came on as a second half substitute against St Mirren on Sunday, then had the Buddies’ goalkeeper beaten with a last minute free-kick that came back off the face of the crossbar.
And the on-loan Rangers forward believes Own Goal won’t be Saints top scorer for much longer.
“The free-kick was obviously frustrating,” said Middleton.
“The ball was coming down but just not enough. If I was a couple yards further back, it might have gone in. Hopefully next time.
“I don’t think anyone is too bothered by who scores, as long as we win.
“We are just waiting for that one chance to drop and I’m sure we’ll kick on.
“In the second half we controlled the game and had a lot more chances.
“Jak Alnwick made a few good saves and there was my one off the bar. When one goes in for us, more will start coming. It’s nothing to worry about.”
The goals that could have been – such as his opportunity to put Saints 2-0 up in the first leg against LASK – stay in the memory, Middleton admitted.
But the attacker’s mindset will always be glass half-full. As it should be.
A great chance for St. Johnstone to double their lead! 😮
Glenn Middleton just couldn't get the ball under control to get the shot off 😬 pic.twitter.com/35O4Uzje7A
— Premier Sports (@PremierSportsTV) August 19, 2021
“It will annoy me for ages,” he said. “Just like that free-kick.
“I am getting in the right positions. I’d rather miss them than not be there at all. The chance will come and I’ll take it.”
Middleton, who now heads off for Scotland under-21 duty, feels that the Perth players who have a fortnight until their next game will benefit greatly from this break.
“It’s been a pretty full-on schedule,” he said. “But, credit to us, everyone has kept going.
“We’ve loved it and can’t complain because it’s what you want. Hopefully this busy period happens again at the start of next season.
“We’ve had a lot of games of football but with all respect to St Mirren I think we finished the stronger team. We looked dangerous and everyone was still running as hard as we were in the first minute.
“I’m sure everyone at the end of the international break we’ll be buzzing to go again and we can really push on.”
Euro motivation
The European adventure may be over but memories of it will motivate Middleton for the rest of the season.
“It was amazing,” he said.
“You will never forget playing against those teams – an unbelievable experience. We should take real confidence from it.
“OK, we were knocked out of the ties. But we really stood our ground and caused Galatasaray and LASK a lot of problems. Everyone deserves credit for that.
“As long as we keep doing the right things and move forward, hopefully there will be a lot more games like that for us in the future.”
