Loick Ayina’s first six weeks at Dundee United could barely have been more eventful.
He arrived at Tannadice amid a whirlwind of dissatisfaction for which he was not responsible.
The announcement of his deadline day signing was met with a social media barrage of vitriol aimed at the club. Ayina wasn’t the striker fans demanded after Tony Watt was allowed to join St Mirren.
None of the anger was aimed at Ayina but he was caught in the cross-fire.
Then, on his debut, the French defender was dismissed following a clumsy foul on Kilmarnock attacker Kyle Vassell. A steep learning curve in just his second-ever senior football match.
Wednesday then saw Ayina drafted in to replace club captain Ryan Edwards in defence, charged with shackling a dangerous, physically imposing Livingston attack. A fine job he did, too.
Ayina jumped at the opportunity to join United on loan from Huddersfield precisely because he wanted to progress and develop in a high-level, pressured environment — and, whether positive or negative, his experiences have all been formative.
“It has been such a big experience for me already,” Ayina told Courier Sport.
“In my first game, I received a red card but that is why I came to a club like Dundee United — I want to learn from challenges and improve.
“I was still confident after that. Maybe that is the first thing to know: I will always be confident. You cannot change your feelings because you take a red card or a yellow card. You need to stay positive.
“If you start to get down or show the other team weakness, then that is not a good thing.
“Playing in the Premiership is not easy but I never run away from a challenge; I’m ready and want to prove I am good enough.”
Channelling his aggression
It would be fair to say that Ayina was fortunate to only receive a yellow card for a ferocious challenge on Livingston star Scott Pittman.
He smiled: “I just need to relax and, maybe sometimes, not be so aggressive!”
However, one suspects that Ayina’s combative streak is going nowhere.
His attitude will be music to the ears of United supporters — and boss Jim Goodwin — who want to see the Tangerines scrap and scratch for every precious point as they attempt to escape the drop-zone.
It mirrors United’s gutsy second half showing in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw at Livi, following a dire opening 45.
“Scottish football is a battle; it’s a war,” said Ayina. “I think against Livingston we showed our fight and competed. We won first balls, second balls and fought for everything.
“The manager (Goodwin) told us at half-time: believe in ourselves because we can definitely come back.
“We had the determination and we knew we were going to score. We showed our character. Every player believed that we could score and take at least a point.
“The manager was relaxed and showed his belief in us. If he came in (at half-time) angry and shouted, it might not have been the same reaction. He spoke to us and showed us what we could do well.”
French flair
It would be wrong to characterise Ayina as all physicality and tenacity.
There is plenty of flair and technique there, he contends.
Ayina’s mix of competitiveness and skill was forged in the cage football arenas of Paris as a teenager — affording him a different apprenticeship to those youngsters who progressed through a uniformed academy set-up.
“I started to play in Paris and — although I know Paris and Scotland is not the same football — I always try to show I can play with the same style I did in France,” Ayina continued.
“That style of football gave me a lot of skills. When you play in Paris, there are so many talented, technical players so you have to reach those levels. It made me more confident on the ball and I don’t stress when I’m in possession.
“It (cage football) is like futsal — five players in the team. And always, when I didn’t have training with my club, I would go out and play football with my friends and that helped me develop a lot.”
It is fair to say the man who sent Ayina to United — proud Dundonian and former Tannadice midfielder Mark Fotheringham — will be heartened by the teenager’s efforts up north.
Fotheringham was dismissed by the Terriers on February 8 but Ayina’s regard for his ex-gaffer shines through.
Ayina added: “He (Fotheringham) was such a big part in me coming here. He told me Dundee was a good city and United are a great club — to go there, enjoy it and learn a lot. I want to say a big thank you to him.”
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