Robbie Neilson has revealed the looming Tannadice takeover was part of the reason he became Dundee United manager.
When he had discussions with then-chairman Mike Martin about succeeding Csaba Laszlo in October, Robbie was told of the possibility American Mark Ogren would be taking control.
He’s been kept up to date with developments since and is excited about the prospect of working with the new Tangerines regime.
“I spoke to the new owner briefly when he was over here and his plans for the club are very exciting,” he said.
“To be part of that is great and I wanted to be part of it.
“One of the reasons I decided to come here was that I was aware it was there in the background.
“I think it will be a very exciting time for the football club.
“When I first came in and spoke to Mike Martin, the previous chairman, he said, ‘Look, this thing is bubbling away in the background.’ So I knew about it.
“With these things, you try to keep it away from players and the staff.
“I have been at clubs where it’s been on then off then on then off again.
“To finally get it over the line is great.”
And he was delighted to give his new Minnesota-based bosses a win in their first game in charge as United beat Falkirk 2-1 on Saturday, particularly after failing to win either of the previous two games.
“It was a massive result for us. The loss and two draws have not been good enough for us, so it was important to get back to winning ways,” he said.
There was a late scare for United when Falkirk halved their lead via an injury-time penalty but overall the gaffer felt it was a thoroughly-deserved three points.
“I thought it was pretty comfortable for us,” he said. “We controlled a lot of the start of the game and then we scored.
“The two teams then changed shape a couple of times.
“I did feel we were very much in control of the match but we lost that goal at the end after we overcommitted a bit and got done.
“At the end of the season, if we achieve what we want to achieve then nobody will be bothered about that, though.”
Next up for United is a trip to Alloa on Saturday. The Wasps are battling relegation but boosted their position with a 2-0 win over Queen of the South.
This article originally appeared on the Evening Telegraph website. For more information, read about our new combined website.
