Paul Paton publicly backed him for the job but he will be hoping Partick Thistle boss Alan Archibald suffers League Cup misery tonight.
In the aftermath of Jackie McNamara’s decision to leave the Jags to become Dundee United boss at the end of January, Paton suggested Archibald would be the ideal candidate for the vacancy.
As Thistle captain, the midfielder spoke on behalf of the rest of the players as well as himself.
Taking those opinions on board, the club eventually appointed former United defender Archibald as McNamara’s replacement.
That decision was richly rewarded when he carried on the good work started by McNamara and his assistant Simon Donnelly at Firhill.
They went on to be crowned Division One champions and have been a welcome addition to the newly-formed Premiership.
Their top-flight journey began with a goalless but thrilling curtain-raiser against the Tangerines and tonight the teams come together again in the third round of the League Cup.
Understandably, Paton hasn’t been surprised by the bright start to the campaign made by his old team nor the sure-footed way Archibald has led them.
“When the gaffer (McNamara) left to come here nobody spoke up more for Archie than me,” said Paton. “I spoke as captain of Thistle to say that the players thought he should get the job.
“We came out as a group to vouch for Archie because we thought that if he did get it we would go on and win the league and that’s what happened.
“We stressed just how good a job he could do and have been proven right. Thistle did win the title and they have continued on the good work this season.
“Indeed, I was at Thistle’s game against Kilmarnock on Saturday and they played some good stuff.
“They passed the ball about and it is no surprise to me to see them doing so well in the top flight. They have a lot of good players with plenty of skill so I thought they would be fine.”
Saying nice things about your opposition is one thing but there will be no more determined United player on the park tonight than Paton.
He believes the Tangerines are capable of collecting silverware and victory tonight will move him closer to realising that dream.
“I haven’t enjoyed too much success in cup football but I feel United are capable of winning a cup and that’s one of the reasons I came here,” added Paton.
“I knew Thistle would do well this season but also thought I could win something here.
“United have won the Scottish Cup in recent years and it’s a realistic ambition to think we can win something again.
“So our aim for this season is to try to win a trophy as well as getting into the top six.”
The Tangerines have been both good and bad in games of late. They were outsanding up at Ross County but followed that up with a dire first-half display against Motherwell at Tannadice last Sunday.
They were a whole lot better after the break, though, and Paton added: “We were poor in the first half and said to ourselves that we had to do better in the second.
“We got a couple of goals and that was good for us. Then we lost our lead to such a wonderful strike from Lionel Ainsworth so it was a mixed day for us.”
Partick’s Scotland Under-21 midfielder Stuart Bannigan is a doubt due to a groin strain but Jordan MacMillan definitely misses out after an ankle knock picked up in training means he faces yet more frustration after an injury-interrupted start to the season.