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Hartley out to bolster his attacking options

Dundee manager Paul Hartley.
Dundee manager Paul Hartley.

Dundee boss Paul Hartley is looking to draft in reinforcements to give everyone in his squad a boost following Saturday’s shock setback at Cowdenbeath.

The Dark Blues manager tasted defeat for the first time since he was installed in the Dens Park hot-seat, with the Blue Brazil running out 2-0 winners.

Hartley, who was linked with a move last month when he was the boss at Alloa for former Hearts and Dundee United frontman Rudi Skacel, is now looking to bolster his options at Dundee.

While keeping his cards close to his chest over likely targets, the manager admitted that a lack of firepower was the most pressing problem he was determined to address.

He said: “We are looking and we have spoken about a couple of players.

“We are waiting to hear back from one or two but we are hopeful. We would like to get people in quickly just to give the squad a boost to freshen things up.

“One thing we have not done is score enough goals. Peaso (Peter MacDonald) is out on his own in terms of goals. So we need more from every department.

“Defensively, we have been fine but we haven’t been scoring enough. It has been a big problem for us.”

Hartley admitted that while unhappy with the display at Cowdenbeath, he and his players cannot afford to dwell on the negatives with so few games left until the end of the season.

However, he is determined there will be a reaction from the team against Morton this weekend after they let the large travelling support down at Central Park.

Hartley said: “It was a disappointing performance. Their attitude was good but it was flat in terms of the quality.

“We didn’t do enough or cause them enough problems and it was a hard one to take. I knew it was going to be a difficult game. I thought we started OK in terms of closing them down, the pressure and intensity.

“But our quality on the ball and decision making was poor and that was the big thing for me.

“We lost two bad goals that could have been avoided. We just have to dust ourselves down. We will speak about it and watch some footage of it and see what we can do better.”

He added: “It is another big game on Saturday and we can’t afford to feel sorry for ourselves. When you are down to the last 11 games, you have to move on quickly. We can’t afford to think about the previous game too much you have to look forward and be positive.

“The boys came in this morning and were nice and bright which is what I am looking for. We just have to make sure they are bang at it on Saturday again and I am looking for a reaction from them.

“We let the fans down at the weekend. They came to the game in big numbers as the players have been good in the last two matches but they let them down at Cowdenbeath.

“This Saturday, it is top versus bottom and some people may feel it should be easy for us but it won’t be like that. Every team in this league has something to play for.”

While little went right at Cowdenbeath, the return of Nicky Riley from injury was a welcome boost.

Hartley added: “We didn’t create enough chances but Nicky coming back will hopefully help with that. He will get a 45-minute run-out with the reserves (tonight). He just needs game time to regain match sharpness.

“Davidson is also coming back. I also thought Nade did well for us when he came on. He kept the ball well so there are a few positives to take from the game.”