While much of the damage was done prior to his arrival, Jim Goodwin oversaw Dundee United’s relegation to the Championship in 2023.
Under his watch, the Tangerines lost all their post-split fixtures.
And with his dismissal by Aberdeen still fresh in the mind, there were plenty of naysayers.
So, while it may seem like the obvious call with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, Mark Ogren’s decision to hand the former St Mirren and Dons boss a new contract following the drop was bold.
Even the United owner admits that – thinking back to Goodwin’s initial appointment – he never envisioned keeping Goodwin in the event of the final weeks of the campaign going so badly awry.
Ogren said: “After we decided to extend Jim’s contract, I said to him, “if you’d told me when we were interviewing you, that we’d be relegated and lose all our games after the split, I would have said there’s no way I’ll be rehiring you!”
“But he showed us enough of what he can do that we felt he was the guy.
“As it turns out, he’s definitely the guy.”
Communication
Ogren’s faith was rewarded when Goodwin led United to the Championship title at the first time of asking while embarking on significant cost-cutting.
The Tangerines remain in third spot in the Premiership and, despite a recent wobble, are on course to secure top six football and perhaps mount a charge for Europe.
“Jim was the right fit for what our club needed,” continued Ogren. “He communicates so well. A manager needs to work well with everyone, throughout the club. It’s also about relationships and how he deals with players.
“It didn’t work out at the end of that (2022/23) season but we knew there was a good manager there. He’s proven himself in the past. It’s not like we took a flyer on him.
“Granted, he had issues up at Aberdeen – that didn’t work out – but we were willing to give him more time.”
Ogren: ‘We are extremely comfortable with Jim’
Goodwin penned another extension at the tail end of 2024, elongating a relationship that continues to be one of the strongest Ogren has enjoyed with any of his six permanent United bosses.
“I probably have more interaction with Jim than I’ve had with any other manager, barring maybe Robbie (Neilson),” continued Ogren.
“I’ve never even met Micky Mellon, to this day! It was all through Zoom during Covid. It was a strange time and it’s hard to develop a relationship with someone through video conferencing.
“Ultimately, every manager has their different attributes, but we are extremely comfortable with Jim.”
Indeed, should Goodwin guide United to European qualification against the odds, the biggest challenge may be holding on to the Irishman.
His nightmare few months at Aberdeen prior to being sacked increasingly appears to be an aberration, having enjoyed impressive stints with St Mirren and Alloa.
And Ogren added: “We are certainly open to keeping him long term and, from his view, I think he’s open to staying long term. But you never know. Things change.
“It’s the same with players; you bring people in and hope they do so well that someone else wants them. That’s just business, frankly.”
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