Dundee United’s Stuart Armstrong has paid tribute to the man overseeing the conveyor belt of young talent coming through at Tannadice.
The promising midfielder has singled out youth director Stevie Campbell for special praise for the power of work he puts in on the training field to nurture the club’s youngsters.
That endeavour is paying off in spades with another product of the youth set-up, Johnny Russell, the latest United tyro to attract envious looks from other clubs with Celtic expressing an interest in the striker during the recent transfer window.
Armstrong said: ”I heard about the interest in Johnny on Sunday. It is very important that we keep him as he has been scoring a lot of goals for us. I hope the club do their utmost to hold on to him as he is one of our best players.
”Like all of us, though, I’m sure his main focus will continue to be doing well for Dundee United and hitting the back of the net.
”It is really flattering when other sides look at young players from the club. I think it shows just how good the youth development is at Dundee United.
”It is a great place to learn your trade and Stevie Campbell is doing a really good job bringing young players through. A lot of those players are playing in the first team today.
”Stevie deserves a lot of credit as he puts in loads of hours at the training ground. We are a really young squad as it is but we know if we work hard and play well, we will get a chance.”
United boss Peter Houston was pleased that the transfer window closed without any fresh attempts to lure Russell from the club, and he insisted Tannadice is the best place for the Scotland Under-21 player to continue his footballing education.
He said: ”There is no doubt that staying here is the best thing for Johnny Russell. He is a very promising player but he’s still learning all the time. And it’s only a few months ago that I felt the need to take him out of the team when his consistency dropped a wee bit.
”But I think in 18 months’ time he can go along the same lines as what David Goodwillie did. What he’s got to add to his game is the amount of goals that Goodie was able to score.
”An inquiry was made about Johnny but I think at this moment in time staying with Dundee United to learn his trade is the best thing for him.”
United travel to Ibrox on Sunday on Scottish Cup business to face a Rangers side still reeling from the loss of top striker Nikica Jelavic and further off-field financial problems. However, Houston insists his side will still be facing a severe test at the home of the defending champions.
He said: ”Rangers got a great result last weekend without Jelavic and scored four goals against Hibs. Sone Aluko and David Healy scored goals, while Steven Davis looked excellent. He is getting back to the form which shows he’s such a good player.
”Aluko has been a great signing for Rangers. He has provided a real spark for them. He can play up front and in the wide areas as well as score goals. So we will respect Rangers because they have so many good players, but I’m sure they will give us respect back.
”In a cup tie you know it’s 90 minutes so you just go and try to win the game. It’s a difficult one at this stage of the competition but one we’re looking forward to.”