The Dundee United Thread 22/23

[ATLIS]

4 hours ago, Pull My Strings said:

Reports elsewhere suggest he was offered a new deal by Livi and the opinion on their thread seems to have been that he was one of their best players when fit. Problem was he simply couldn't get himself fit again after getting covid. The link to Dunfermline also looks rather tenuous. United were apparently after him before he went to Livi and he was better than decent against United in the Championship (albeit against an utterly rancid United side).

If he's fit then it looks a decent signing to me, although I would worry a bit that it pushes Meekison down the pecking order.

That's wrong. We gave him a chance to earn a deal when he was back fit and in the end we didn't offer him a deal. He signed a precontract with Dunfermline and almost went there in January on loan, it fell through as Dunfermline wouldn't pay all his wages for the loan. The deal for him to go there though was 100% done and signed, if they had stayed up he'd be their player right now. 

The bit about not being able to get himself fit again post-COVID is true but misses out that other significant health problems played a factor in that too. For me though he was never one of our best players, he always went on runs where he looked like he could go on to be that but broke down due to injury every time

Edited July 10, 2022 by ATLIS

[dregs 83]

Scott Burns confirming on Twitter that bringing Sibbald in doesn’t impact our pursuit of McGrath.

[ArabianKnight]

53 minutes ago, dregs 83 said:

Scott Burns confirming on Twitter that bringing Sibbald in doesn’t impact our pursuit of McGrath.

Even more strange signing then. 

[Ludo*1]

What's the expectation for you lads this season?

Seem to have spent quite a bit on Levitt, Fletcher and of course, the new manager but having lost Siegrist, increase in amount of games due to Europe and 4th looking like it'd require a team to maybe be considerably better than last season, would you be content with bottom 6 or would that be grounds for the pitchfork treatment?

Genuinely curious, not a trolling attempt.

[Pull My Strings]

1 hour ago, ATLIS said:

That's wrong. We gave him a chance to earn a deal when he was back fit and in the end we didn't offer him a deal. He signed a precontract with Dunfermline and almost went there in January on loan, it fell through as Dunfermline wouldn't pay all his wages for the loan. The deal for him to go there though was 100% done and signed, if they had stayed up he'd be their player right now. 

The bit about not being able to get himself fit again post-COVID is true but misses out that other significant health problems played a factor in that too. For me though he was never one of our best players, he always went on runs where he looked like he could go on to be that but broke down due to injury every time

Just going by the comments in the Livi thread. If it's a load of shite then it's shite from your fellow posters, and from you.

On 18/05/2022 at 13:16, Cptn Hooch said:

On 18/05/2022 at 13:14, third lanark said:

Has there been any rumours as to where McMillan and Sibbald are going? Would have been happy with both at Firhill 

Sibbald apparently has something in place with Dunfermline but not sure how concrete that is after their relegation. Both could easily sign for a premiership team but suspect they'll drop to championship. Thistle would be a decent shout for Jack after his previous success there

This appears to be the only reference to Sibbald going to Dunfermline. Looks pretty tenuous to me. No doubt you'll be able to provide an authoritative source for the deal being 100% done.

On 12/04/2022 at 21:58, ATLIS said:

The summer could be an interesting one for us

We could end up with cash for Fitzwater and Anderson and use it to clear the debt and maybe look at using some of it on the squad for once. I think there was also interest in Stryjek too possibly.

Out of contract we've got:

Forrest (been offered a deal, will likely leave), Hamilton (offered a deal, will likely stay), Jacobs (sadly will likely leave), Pignatiello (wouldn't surprise me to see him leave), Poplatnik (Will probably leave), Sibbald (been offered a deal), McMillan (will likely leave), Kelly (could leave but wouldn't be surprised if Martindale gives him another year), Parkes (will likely leave), Bartley (already non-playing), Maley (basically non-playing), Reilly (will likely leave)


 

Here's you reporting that Sibbald had been offered a deal.

On 19/10/2021 at 23:07, LIVIFOREVER said:

Wonder what our best XI would be this season, i'd def want Anderson up front, and Bailey in an attacking mid 3, here's where it gets tricky for me though, a fully fit Sibbald would be a must, imo he's our best player, but a fully fit Shinnie would be there too, and i like Forrest, and can't leave out Pittman, not when he's looking back to his old self, but they can't all play.

 

 

And one of your chums opining that he's your best player (I toned it down to 'one of' because these assessments are always subjective.

I've no personal knowledge of Sibbald's time at Livi so if the posts in your thread from fellow Livi fans are bollocks then fair enough. 

[ATLIS]

Just now, Pull My Strings said:

Just going by the comments in the Livi thread. If it's a load of shite then it's shite from your fellow posters, and from you.

This appears to be the only reference to Sibbald going to Dunfermline. Looks pretty tenuous to me. No doubt you'll be able to provide an authoritative source for the deal being 100% done.

Here's you reporting that Sibbald had been offered a deal.

And one of your chums opining that he's your best player (I toned it down to 'one of' because these assessments are always subjective.

I've no personal knowledge of Sibbald's time at Livi so if the posts in your thread from fellow Livi fans are bollocks then fair enough. 

Sibbald to Dunfermline was confirmed by Callum Carson I'm pretty sure on our Facebook Livi group, he's the reporter from Livi and it's likely came from Martindale himself or Sibbald. He's always ahead on deals etc and seems to have an inside track at the ongoings with the club. The deal was 100% done I'm willing to say just based off of Carson's reputation for getting Livi things right. 

I think the one where I'd posted he'd been offered a deal was an article at the time saying he'd have a chance to earn a deal which looked all but certain at the time. I think that was before the specifics of his COVID ordeal came out though.

Sibbald is probably comfortably a squad player for us, but looking back at his time with us he was never someone that was our best player. He always had spells where it looked like he could go on to be our best player but either lost form or got injured. A lot of his good performances seemed to come when we were shite as well, and he stood out amongst players who weren't doing great. 

One of the main issues with him is that he was never fully fit for more than 2-3 weeks. He spent multiple 2+ month spells out injured with us in 3-4 years. 
 

[Tannadeechee]

50 minutes ago, Ludo*1 said:

What's the expectation for you lads this season?

Seem to have spent quite a bit on Levitt, Fletcher and of course, the new manager but having lost Siegrist, increase in amount of games due to Europe and 4th looking like it'd require a team to maybe be considerably better than last season, would you be content with bottom 6 or would that be grounds for the pitchfork treatment?

Genuinely curious, not a trolling attempt.

For me top 6. Bottom 6 would be a failure. Eriksson's stats, all be it from the Swedish top league, were better than Siegrist's, better than Zander Clark's so I'm not seeing a big drop there. We've upgraded McNulty with Fletcher to allow us someone who can hold the ball up to bring Watt, Clark and the midfield into play amd has an aerial presence.

McGrath is still a target, no matter what happens with Sibbald and we still to bring in someone to compete with Eriksson. I think the basics of a decent team was there, just think if Ross allows them to play with more pace, stops the team trying to walk the ball into the net amd plays players in their proper position  ( Niskanen on wing not left back) it should bring some improvement. Will that be enough to stay 4th or compete for 3rd this year we'll have to wait and see.

My big concern is if a bid comes in for Edwards would we be able to bring in a comparable CH in time.

[mishtergrolsch]

 

1 hour ago, Ludo*1 said:

What's the expectation for you lads this season?

Seem to have spent quite a bit on Levitt, Fletcher and of course, the new manager but having lost Siegrist, increase in amount of games due to Europe and 4th looking like it'd require a team to maybe be considerably better than last season, would you be content with bottom 6 or would that be grounds for the pitchfork treatment?

Genuinely curious, not a trolling attempt.

For me its got to be top 6. Anything less would be seen as a backwards step imo. Hibs and Aberdeen will be better but with our squad and spending we should be looking at 6th at least.

Obviously if there are horrendous injuries and suspension etc etc then fair enough but I think we've now got a manager who will get enough out of the players at his disposal to get top 6.

If we perform like this past season and finish bottom 6 then it'll be the whole tool shed never mind a pitch fork.

[mishtergrolsch]

26 minutes ago, Tannadeechee said:

For me top 6. Bottom 6 would be a failure. Eriksson's stats, all be it from the Swedish top league, were better than Siegrist's, better than Zander Clark's so I'm not seeing a big drop there. We've upgraded McNulty with Fletcher to allow us someone who can hold the ball up to bring Watt, Clark and the midfield into play amd has an aerial presence.

McGrath is still a target, no matter what happens with Sibbald and we still to bring in someone to compete with Eriksson. I think the basics of a decent team was there, just think if Ross allows them to play with more pace, stops the team trying to walk the ball into the net amd plays players in their proper position  ( Niskanen on wing not left back) it should bring some improvement. Will that be enough to stay 4th or compete for 3rd this year we'll have to wait and see.

My big concern is if a bid comes in for Edwards would we be able to bring in a comparable CH in time.

Someone will have to pay big money to get Edwards imo. And with Mulgrew and Graham id think we'd be OK in the short term.

[Junior_Arab]

1 hour ago, Ludo*1 said:

What's the expectation for you lads this season?

Seem to have spent quite a bit on Levitt, Fletcher and of course, the new manager but having lost Siegrist, increase in amount of games due to Europe and 4th looking like it'd require a team to maybe be considerably better than last season, would you be content with bottom 6 or would that be grounds for the pitchfork treatment?

Genuinely curious, not a trolling attempt.

To be honest, if Aberdeen & Hibs were to get back to where they “should” be and we were to finish 7th behind this seasons top 3, Aberdeen, Hibs and say a strong Motherwell side I think I’d be disappointed but not necessarily calling for heads to roll, providing we played well enough. 
 

If however the season pans out like last year and we finished 7th behind the top 3, and bang average Motherwell, Ross County and Livingston teams, say, who had won 3 games after Christmas or spent most of the season in the relegation spots then I wouldn’t be quite so chipper. 

[RossBFaeDundee]

Tbf I don't see how United should struggle in qualifying for Europe again, as I very much have my doubts that Hibs and Aberdeen are back where they "should" be. Fourth is certainly a very realistic outcome (as much as I dislike saying it).

[Twinkle]

2 hours ago, Ludo*1 said:

What's the expectation for you lads this season?

Seem to have spent quite a bit on Levitt, Fletcher and of course, the new manager but having lost Siegrist, increase in amount of games due to Europe and 4th looking like it'd require a team to maybe be considerably better than last season, would you be content with bottom 6 or would that be grounds for the pitchfork treatment?

Genuinely curious, not a trolling attempt.

Top 6 and a couple of cup runs. Hopefully our Conference League group matches dont affect our league season too much

[PartyFears2]

Top half, and a trip to Hampden. I’d be content with that. 
 

and entertained along the way 

[LIVIFOREVER]

3 hours ago, Pull My Strings said:

Just going by the comments in the Livi thread. If it's a load of shite then it's shite from your fellow posters, and from you.

This appears to be the only reference to Sibbald going to Dunfermline. Looks pretty tenuous to me. No doubt you'll be able to provide an authoritative source for the deal being 100% done.

Here's you reporting that Sibbald had been offered a deal.

And one of your chums opining that he's your best player (I toned it down to 'one of' because these assessments are always subjective.

I've no personal knowledge of Sibbald's time at Livi so if the posts in your thread from fellow Livi fans are bollocks then fair enough. 

He had a terrible season with illness and injuries last season, but i stick by my post. He's as technically gifted a player that we had  when he was at Livi, a fully fit Sibbald isn't just a squad player. Just not last season.

Really hope he gets his illness and injury issues sorted for this season and gets back to his best, top player and top lad, deserves some luck after the shite time he had last season.

Edited July 10, 2022 by LIVIFOREVER

[Granny Danger]

21 minutes ago, PartyFears2 said:

Top half, and a trip to Hampden. I’d be content with that. 
 

and entertained along the way 

That would be nice.

[TheScarf]

Sibbald is a weird signing.  He's such a Killie or St Mirren one.

[ArabianKnight]

Apparently that's us in for 2 Aussies, Garuccio that used to play for Hearts and the keeper from CCM. 

Notice the dude who played for Hearts is a LB. 

Why would we sign another when we've got McMann and Niskanen who played lb/lwb regularly last season. Along with Graham who can play there plus Duffy (who I noticed is away on the pre season trip to Spain) Freeman and Smith who can both play left back! 

Edited July 11, 2022 by ArabianKnight

[ArabFC]

Ross keeps stating that we are 'significantly short' of players, which disheartens me.

Obviously many are kids, but going by wiki we have 30 players in the first team squad.

If we're signing players just so we have two senior players defaulted in every position, that is a huge waste of resources imho.

There are a couple of key positions we need to fill with quality - a defensive midfielder being top of the list.

 

[mishtergrolsch]

22 minutes ago, ArabFC said:

Ross keeps stating that we are 'significantly short' of players, which disheartens me.

Obviously many are kids, but going by wiki we have 30 players in the first team squad.

If we're signing players just so we have two senior players defaulted in every position, that is a huge waste of resources imho.

There are a couple of key positions we need to fill with quality - a defensive midfielder being top of the list.

 

Maybe he means good quality players.

The keeper situation is a mystery. Is the new guy going to be good or a disaster? Who knows.

Our defence (bar the left hand side) is solid in terms of backup if playing 4 at the back.

Midfield is the same as last seasons which, bar Levitt, was about as uncreative as I've ever seen. We need a box to box and a defensive midfielder imo. Mind you, we've got Harkes again. Yay. 

Maybe Butcher will come back into the fold with Ross??

And we need a winger on the right hand side too.

We couldn't score for shit last season either. Hopefully Fletcher can help in that department but we need the ball in better positions.

Ultimately, if Ross can get 2 good players for most positions and its sanctioned by Big Ogren then thats fine by me. We'll need a decent sized squad, with quality, if they are serious about trying to get a wee Euro run with top 6 and a cup run.

 

[Tannadeechee]

39 minutes ago, ArabianKnight said:

Apparently that's us in for 2 Aussies, Garuccio that used to play for Hearts and the keeper from CCM. 

Notice the dude who played for Hearts is a LB. 

Why would we sign another when we've got McMann and Niskanen who played lb/lwb regularly last season. Along with Graham who can play there plus Duffy (who I noticed is away on the pre season trip to Spain) Freeman and Smith who can both play left back! 

 

10 minutes ago, ArabFC said:

Ross keeps stating that we are 'significantly short' of players, which disheartens me.

Obviously many are kids, but going by wiki we have 30 players in the first team squad.

If we're signing players just so we have two senior players defaulted in every position, that is a huge waste of resources imho.

There are a couple of key positions we need to fill with quality - a defensive midfielder being top of the list.

 

This is my thoughts too. The only positions we are REALLY short in is a 2nd keeper and defensive midfielder. As @ArabianKnightmentions a whole lost of folk that can play LB if needed its.not really a prority and makes no sense, unless Garuccio is a better player than McMann but surely a 2nd keeper and defensive midfielder would make us a better team than another LB.

Of the often mentioned 18 players who left who were actually 1st teamers requiring replacement?

Siegrist - although it caan be argued that Eriksson is his replacement and we need to replace Carson

Neison - didn't.play many games for whatever reason. Still have 3 CHs so depending on formation its a maybe, unless one of the youth are looking OK as a backup.

McNulty - Fletcher in for him.

Biamou - only appepared on the pitch so we knew what he looked like. Doesn't need to be replaced as he didn't contribute, although could be argued Flletcher isnhis replacement and we need a trickierplayer in to replace McNulty as Watt isn't the "in the box striker" we need to out pressure on Clark.

Sporle - gave cover for LB and Left mid, but we have Niskanen, or McMann who can play there or Kai Fothheringham who will need more game time too.

McDonald - although he was only here 6 months with the Butcher situation this is a must. We've had rumours of Gogic but we need someone here. Should be a priority along with a Carson replacement.

Midfield is where we are strongest in numbers, with Glass, Mochrie, Meekison, Harkes,Levitt, Chalmer, Pawlett, Cudjoe and the young lad who made is debut towards the end of the season whose name I forrget. Thats where I suprised at some of Ross' comments. Its not numbers, its quality we need.