Dundee United boss Jim Goodwin is adamant NO first-team players will depart prior to next week’s loan deadline.
Lewis O’Donnell (Queen of the South), Jack Newman (Inverness), Sam Cleall-Harding and Ruairidh Adams (both Kelty Hearts) are among those to have been farmed out for formative stints in the lower leagues.
However, several more senior performers have struggled for minutes, with Kai Fotheringham perhaps the most stark example. The Scotland U/21 international has been absent from the Tangerines’ last three match-day squads.
Glenn Middleton, Meshack Ubochioma and Richard Odada have also seen limited action.
And Goodwin confirmed that he has received “plenty of calls” regarding the availability of his fringe players – but gave them short shrift.
He said: “We’ve already put our boys out on loan — like (Lewis) O’Donnell at Queen of the South and (Ruairidh) Adams and (Sam) Harding at Kelty.
“There’s no-one else within the first-team squad that’s available.
“I’ve had plenty of phone-calls from managers asking about one or two of the lads who aren’t currently in the starting XI.
“But they are all really important players for me. The 20-odd senior players we have ALL have significant importance.
“We are only a few league games into the season and, for as much as we have a full group to choose from, over the course of the campaign there will be injuries and suspensions.
“We will need everyone who is here at the moment to ensure we have a strong enough group.”
‘Very positive’ Ryan Strain scan
The return of Ryan Strain will further enhance Goodwin’s options in the coming months, with a pivotal scan last week offering a “very positive” prognosis for the summer signing.
Strain, 27, suffered a torn hamstring in his second appearance for United against Stenhousemuir in the Premier Sports Cup in July. He subsequently underwent surgery.
And the latest update from his specialist will allow the Australia international to step up the recovery process – potentially joining in with non-contact work alongside his teammates within a fortnight.
“The scan was very positive,” revealed Goodwin. “The muscle is healing exactly as we would have hoped, and we are now able to step up his rehabilitation programme.
“We can take the reins off Ryan a bit and really open him up.
“I’d like to think that over the next two-to-three weeks we can get him in with the group and doing some non-contact stuff. Then possibility in the build-up to the November international break, we could get him involved and fit for selection.”
Goodwin, whose side visit Kilmarnock on Saturday, added: “Those scans midway through the recovery are so important to reassure the player that everything is on track and healing as the surgeon would like.
“I’ve had instances at previous clubs where sometimes the feedback is NOT as positive. It can be a nervy moment for the player.
“It’ll be like having a new signing when he’s back.”
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