Dundee United duo Charlie Mulgrew and Steven Fletcher face a race against time to be fit for Saturday’s Tannadice showdown against Aberdeen.
Fletcher, 35, limped off during the Tangerines’ 2-1 defeat at the hands of St Johnstone at the weekend, with Tony Watt climbing from the bench to ripple the net in his place.
Head coach Liam Fox is hopeful United caught the slight groin discomfort before it became a major issue.
Mulgrew, 36, missed out against the Saintees altogether.
The former Scotland defender suffered a thigh strain last Friday and was sidelined for the visit of the Perth outfit.
And Fox has declared both players are “touch and go” for the fixture against the Dons, with United seeking their first league win of the campaign — and just a fourth domestic victory at Tannadice in 2022.
Touch and go
Fox said: “The big man (Mulgrew) had a slight issue on Friday morning with his thigh muscle. That was disappointing for us and him.
“He was moving a bit better on Tuesday morning but we are not sure at this stage how he is going to be for the weekend.
“We will have to leave that until later in the week, so he will be touch and go for the Aberdeen game.
“Fletcher felt tightness (groin) during the game and we didn’t want to do any long-term damage.
“He is being assessed by the medical staff but, again, he is probably going to be touch and go for Saturday as well.
“It would be disappointing to have the two of them missing — but it does is give opportunities to others.
“Everybody else is fine and back on the training pitch, which is a positive.”
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