Dundee United boss Jackie McNamara believes his team can emerge from their form slump if they can get intensity back into their play.
The Tannadice boss has concluded that an ability to press and attack teams at pace has been missing during the club’s six-match run without a win.
United welcome St Johnstone to Tannadice on Monday night, desperate to rediscover the X-factor that made them arguably the most exciting team in the Scottish Premiership in the months before Christmas.
Since going down 4-1 away to St Mirren on Boxing Day they have lost 3-0 to the Perth Saints, were beaten 2-1 at home by Aberdeen, have drawn with both Hibs and Inverness Caley Thistle then arguably recorded the worst result of the lot at Dingwall on Saturday as they were defeated 3-0 by Ross County.
It is a tale of woe that has had fans scratching and shaking their heads.
Having reflected upon the last month, McNamara has come up with a few possible reasons for that sequence of results but perhaps the most significant has been the absence of a lasting tempo from
United’s football.
“It can’t be plain sailing all the time,” said McNamara when asked how his players have been dealing with the form dip.
“You take the adulation and you take the criticism as well. You have to learn from that and be stronger mentally.
“During our (winning) run we didn’t get carried away because there were still so many things we needed to improve upon.
“Likewise, in football, everybody goes through disappointments.
“But I am a great believer that if you do things properly, work hard, pass the ball and do things you are good at then you have more chance of winning the game than playing percentage football.
“For me, it is when we play with intensity as a team that we are very good. When we don’t do that we are slow, predict-able, panicky in possession and can be very average.”
John Souttar and Ryan Gauld are back from their break in Tenerife and available for the St Johnstone game.