Jim Goodwin expects criticism when Dundee United lose matches.
But the Tangerines boss insists his side’s record this season means nobody should be getting “carried away”.
Tuesday night’s dismal home loss to Airdrie allowed title rivals Raith Rovers to draw level on points at the top of the Championship.
Goodwin expects a reaction from his players when they face Partick Thistle on Saturday.
But the United manager is adamant he and his side don’t deserve some of the stronger criticism thrown at them..
Goodwin said: “I know what it is like at big clubs when you lose big games of football. People can sometimes get carried away.
“As a group and a staff we have never allowed that to affect us.
“We don’t get too high when things have been going well and we haven’t got too low when we have had a rare defeat.
“The defeat the other night against Airdrie was only our fourth defeat in 25 games. I don’t think that is terrible form at all.
“We just need to show a positive reaction. That is what we want and people expect. That is what we expect of ourselves.
“What happens at other clubs is irrelevant really. We are top of the league.
“We’ve put a lot into it to be in this position and we want to make sure we finish the job off.”
Partick Thistle is a fixture that has been kind to Dundee United this season, with the Terrors scoring eight times without reply in two meetings.
This time around, Kris Doolan’s side is coming off the back of conceding 10 goals in their previous three fixtures.
United face a midweek trip to Morton after Saturday’s clash in Glasgow, but Goodwin’s focus is strictly on the Jags for now.
“Partick are third and Morton are fourth, as things stand,” added Goodwin.
“They will be difficult games but we have had two good results against Partick.
“They have the [joint] top scorer in Brian Graham.
“They have some really dangerous players in the forward areas who can cause you problems.
“We just need to get back to doing the basics again, keeping clean sheets because we have conceded too many goals, which is unlike us.”
David Wotherspoon update
There are no fresh injury concerns for United this weekend, though attacker David Wotherspoon is likely to miss the Partick and Morton games and is eyeing his return against Arbroath a week on Saturday.
“Morton will come too soon for Wotherspoon but I would expect him to be fit for the following Saturday,” said Goodwin.
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