Dundee United assistant boss Simon Donnelly has insisted there is no danger of his players switching off early even though European qualification now looks beyond the Tannadice team.
United’s 1-0 defeat in Dingwall on Friday night leaves the Tangerines seven points adrift of third spot with just three games remaining, meaning Jackie McNamara’s side on the face of it have little more than pride to play for in the run-in.
However, Donnelly does not buy into that theory and is convinced the United side still have plenty to prove as the season draws to a close.
“We’re definitely looking forward to the three games and it’s not a case of winding down here we want to kick on and win these games,” he stressed.
“We got into the top six and it was great with the Aberdeen result but since then it has been a wee bit flat. We had a good performance in the Scottish Cup semi-final and we were a wee bit unlucky in the two games since.
“We didn’t start the Motherwell game well and Friday night was a wee bit disappointing for us as well. But there are three games to go and you want to kick on. You’ve got one eye on preparations for next year but we’ve got three games to play and nine points.
“Let’s go and try and get the nine points. There are players out of contract and there’s the financial side of it for the club as well with moving positions in the league so we’ve got to go and approach these games like any other game.”
Donnelly also reckons the fact two of the three closing fixtures are at Tannadice should provide more than enough motivation for the squad, with the United number two eyeing a strong finish in front of the home faithful.
“The game against Motherwell, we let ourselves down with the start we had and we gave ourselves too much to do,” he said. “The advantage is there with the two home games, and we’ve obviously got Celtic in the last game, but we need to focus on Saturday first.
“There might be chances there for boys to go and show us what they’ve got. The young lads, Ryan Gauld and John Souttar in particular, have come in, have done really well and have held their own in the games they’ve played.”