Dundee are in trouble.
Since the turn of the year, the Dark Blues have picked up just five points from 24 available.
And found themselves looking nervously at the Sunday lunchtime contest between St Johnstone in 12th and Hearts in 10th.
The Jambos win kept Saints six points behind at the bottom but also left the Dee four points adrift in the relegation play-off spot.
There is very little to be positive about at Dens Park right now after a truly damaging 3-1 loss at Ross County on Saturday.
The pressure is on and, so far, they are not handling it.
Courier Sport was in the Highlands to pick out key talking points in Dingwall.
Ross County
Don Cowie’s side enjoy playing Dundee, no doubt about that.
The Staggies are now seventh in the table on 32 points – five ahead of their vanquished weekend foes – with matches against Dundee contributing 28% of that total.
Three victories, all well-deserved, have the Highland side looking at a top-six charge and the Dark Blues firmly mired in a relegation battle.
Ross County were full of confidence, Dundee were bereft of it and that difference has only stretched after this crucial contest.
Dundee’s real strength last season was beating the teams at the bottom of the table.
This time teams are beating them instead.
Tony Docherty
The Dundee boss is under pressure, no doubt.
Just seven league wins from 27 this season will do that. Four straight league defeats with an aggregate of 17-2 against will certainly do that.
The club’s American owners have invested good money in this side to ensure that when they realise their new stadium dream it is Premiership football and not Championship action that is on show at New Campy.
Relegation is not part of the plan.
However, there are no indications of any change being imminent.
The manner of defeat in Dingwall and yet another three goals conceded will, though, have John Nelms and Gordon Strachan considering options.
This was another collapse – two goals conceded immediately after Docherty had given his half-time team talk did not do the manager any favours at all.
More bad results in the two massive games coming in the next seven days will only pile the pressure on even more.
Backline
Fans have been desperate to see Docherty switch from his preferred back three to a back four for some time.
The squad is built for a back three with attacking wing-backs and the Dark Blues boss has been reluctant to change tack.
He did, though, in the second half in Dingwall.
Seb Palmer-Houlden couldn’t continue and Seun Adewumi came on as a winger, Jordan McGhee moved from centre-back to right-back and Josh Mulligan pushed up to right wing.
It was 4-3-3 and Docherty himself said he thought his team looked better.
Unprompted in his post-match interview for written press, he said: “I thought when we went to a back four, we looked much more of a threat.
“I need to try and take some positives from that going into Wednesday night’s game.”
And when asked how to improve his side later in the interview he added: “Just hard work. We’ve got another game coming right away on Wednesday. It’s important.
“I thought we looked a bit better in that shape.”
A back four is a more straightforward shape for a team to play in and a back-to-basics approach in this situation isn’t the worst idea.
They certainly need to change something to get out of this rut. And Docherty’s comments suggest a move to a back four could well be nigh.
Also injuries may well force the change anyway.
Injuries
If things weren’t bad enough there are now three fitness concerns to contend with.
One of only two strikers in the squad went off in Palmer-Houlden while they lost two defenders in Antonio Portales and Clark Robertson.
All three were muscle injuries meaning there’s a good chance the trio will be unavailable for the crucial midweek trip to Motherwell.
That would leave Ryan Astley, Aaron Donnelly and Jordan McGhee as central defensive options with Joe Shaughnessy also a potential choice if he’s ready.
There are, though, legitimate questions over whether McGhee will be used at Motherwell after agreeing a pre-contract deal at Fir Park.
Injuries are beginning to bite once more leaving options suddenly limited just when they are needed.
Dundee and Docherty have no problems to seek right now.
That means solutions are needed fast.
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