Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Jim Goodwin on Tony Watt recovery plan as Dundee United boss pinpoints what ‘frustrated’ players during St Johnstone debrief

Watt will return to United as the Tannadice side oversee his recovery

Tony Watt after scoring his most recent United goal against St Johnstone. Image: SNS
Tony Watt after scoring his most recent United goal against St Johnstone. Image: SNS

Dundee United will find out the severity of Tony Watt’s ankle injury today.

Watt, currently on loan with St Mirren, saw his campaign prematurely ended after suffering the set-back during Buddies training last week.

With his United contract running until the summer of 2025, the club’s medical staff have already made contact with the former Celtic, Hearts and Motherwell striker.

He’s contracted to Dundee United; he’s our player, so he will come back here.

Jim Goodwin

Watt visited a specialist on Tuesday and United expect to receive the results today.

Goodwin said: “Our physio was meeting Tony to visit a specialist and work out what the best route is going to be.

“He’s going to be out for the foreseeable future so we will put a plan in place for him.

Watt, left, on crutches following his injury. Image: SNS

“He’s contracted to Dundee United; he’s our player, so he will come back here — and we’ll look after him the best we can.”

Bounce back

A more immediate concern for Goodwin, however, is ensuring that United respond to their 1-0 defeat against St Johnstone last weekend.

The narrow reverse in Perth ended a three-match winning run and, allied with Ross County’s win over Livingston, means that just one point separates the Premiership’s bottom three clubs.

The Highlanders visit United on Saturday in a bona fide six-pointer.

“The players responded well to losing against Rangers (on April 1) by going on a three-game run, so we are aiming to do that again,” said the determined Irishman.

“It’s hard to split the teams so it comes down to cutting out mistakes and making sure you give yourself a fighting chance.

“There is still a lot of belief, we are looking forward to playing in front of our fans — hopefully it’s near a full house — and trying to bounce back.”

Frustration

And Goodwin has emphasised the importance of striking while on top — after failing to take advantage of a decent start against the Saints.

It is something that has irked the United players.

Liam Gordon celebrates his winning goal.
Liam Gordon celebrates his winning goal. Image: SNS.

“The way we started the game was very bright and, when you are on top in a game like that, you have to capitalise on it,” Goodwin added.

Speaking to the players this week, that is something they’re frustrated about.

“St Johnstone defended well and credit to them, watching it back I saw how many times they got their bodies in the way and how solid they were.

“But our lads know you have to take advantage.”

Conversation