Dundee better get ready for their travels at the start of 2024.
The Dark Blues will belated begin the new year with FOUR away games in a row.
Yes, four.
All in the space of two weeks.
Just like London buses, nothing for a whole winter break then jam-packed fixture churn as soon as the ball comes back out.
Or something like that. . .
It’s a crucial time for Tony Docherty and his side.
Probably the most crucial point in the season so far.
They immediately need to show they can live without the quality of Owen Beck on the left flank.
That’s a major hole to fill and something they’ve not done yet.
Greg Stewart?
The key to success this season is likely to be the additions Docherty makes this month.
If Greg Stewart is one of them, they’ll immediately increase their creativity and goal threat.
He may be 33 these days but there’s still an awful lot of quality in those feet.
Greg Stewart Leaves 🇮🇳
Highlights:
• 2 League Titles
• Player of the Year 2021/22
• Foreign Player of the Year 2022/23
• 27⚽️/ 28A in 65 Apps
• Freekicks, Panenka's & WorldiesDundee & Killie highly linked pic.twitter.com/LuHdqMopb2
— ScotsAbroadPod (@ScotsAbroadPod) January 10, 2024
And plenty of fuel left in those legs.
I’d wager he may even be fitter now than when he was at Dens Park eight years ago.
Remember Dundee signed him from part-time Cowdenbeath.
By the time he left the Dark Blues, he was probably still getting to grips with how to be a professional footballer at the top level.
It would also be a huge boost for the fanbase to see one of their favourites of the modern era back in dark blue.
We must remember, though, that a deal isn’t close to being done.
Conversations have taken place between player and manager.
However, the wages Stewart was on at Mumbai City I’d expect would be very good.
And difficult for Dundee to meet, if they can even get close.
What Stewart does have, though, is a real affinity with the club that gave him the chance to realise his dream of being a professional player.
It would be great to see him back at the club.
‘Bombshell’ Dens Park news
I took a much-needed week off last week.
With no games on, it was a good time to wind down and relax.
However, no sooner was I back to work than I caught wind of the bombshell decision at Dens Park – father-and-son groundsmen team Brian and Brian Robertson had been suspended.
There has been no official reason given by the club and we can’t speculate.
All I can say is I’d echo my colleague Lee Wilkie’s comments yesterday – it will be the end of an era if there isn’t a Robertson tending to the pitch at Dens.
Both have been a fixture at the stadium since I’ve been in this city – Brian Snr for almost 40 years.
Football is a cruel game, though.
And if an exit is on the cards, this’ll be yet another example of just that.
We’ve seen a few club stalwarts move on in recent years.
Goalkeeping coach Bobby Geddes headed for the exit in 2021 – he’d spent 11 years as a player at Dundee and 15 as a coach. He’s 15th in the all-time list of appearances.
Lorraine Noble, kit lady for many years, also left the club last year.
This sort of thing is usually done with an eye on progress but it does leave a sour taste in the mouth.
Football clubs should be about their local community – sometimes that ideal gets lost.
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