Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has been impressed by the manner in which bottom of the table Dundee United have been galvanised by new manager and former Don Mixu Paatelainen.
United got their first win under Paatelainen against Ross County and are now just two points off second bottom Partick Thistle ahead of the New Firm derby at Pittodrie on Saturday.
Speaking before United’s disappointing defeat to Hibs in the League Cup, McInnes said: “Whenever you face Ross County it is a tough game.
“It is tougher when you face them at Dingwall but even when you play them at home it is always a difficult 90 minutes so that was a good win for Dundee United.
“I watched the game back on Monday. It was a tight game but United found a way to win, which is something they haven’t been doing.
“A new manager has gone in and the fact they have got that win now will help. They obviously had a cup game to focus on midweek but the new manager will be pleased he has managed to get that sort of impact from them so early on.”
McInnes has told his players they have no time to feel sorry for themselves as they search for a return to winning ways.
He was encouraged by aspects of his side’s performance against the Hoops and says his players must remain positive if they are going to end their poor run of results.
“We were disappointed with the result against Celtic as we had prepared well for the game,” he said.
“We did a lot of things well in the first half but you need to put in a strong and complete 90-minute performance against Celtic and we never quite managed to do that.
“We were pleased with what we offered in the first half and towards the end of the game but we should have done better in between, particularly in the period after we conceded the second goal.
“Even at 2-0 down we were still in it. We felt there was a lot about the performance we could be satisfied with.
“When you put so much into a game you want to get the win but we didn’t manage to do that.
“We move on to a home game against Dundee United and it is important we don’t dwell on last weekend’s game too much. We need to concentrate fully on this one.”