What he would not do, though, was discuss his manager’s position and that will only fuel speculation that McCall’s two-year reign in charge of the team is coming to an end.

Chairman and manager spoke briefly just after the final whistle at Hampden — the first time United have lost seven goals in a game for 36 years — and were due to meet again at Tannadice late this afternoon.

In advance of that, Thompson would not be drawn on any likely developments, but it now seems that, even if he remains in charge of the team for Saturday’s Scottish Cup trip to his home town to face Queen of the South, there is a strong chance it will be his final game.

Even a win in Dumfries may not be enough to save his job.

“What I want to do is apologise to all United fans on behalf of the club. We let the fans down drastically last night,” said the chairman.

“Around 2300 of our fans showed their undoubted loyalty and devotion to the club as they out sang a much bigger Rangers support for almost the entire game.

“Four words sum up my feelings towards them — clearly they deserve better.”

As recently as December, Thompson warned his manager results had to improve, but, since then, only two victories have been forthcoming.

As speculation about his position intensified, a defiant McCall made it clear he was not about to quit.

Two years into the job, he remains firm in his belief that he can turn things round, rescue his side from their precarious position in the SPL and make up for the CIS shocker by reaching the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup.

“I am not going to throw in the towel, that’s for sure. Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a quitter,” he said.

“We have good players at this club and we can be successful — it’s just a matter of finding the right blend.”

And, while he admitted to being shattered by one of United’s worst-ever defeats — the only darker night than this in the League Cup was an 8-1 reversal at Clyde way back in 1957 — he defended his gung-ho tactics that saw five goals conceded in 21 second-half minutes.

“We were kamikaze when we went 3-1 down in the second half and the only people I would apologise to for that are the fans,” he added.

“I still feel it was the right thing to do. If it had been about self-preservation I would not have done it, but it was not about that, it was about trying to get Dundee United to a final.

“We had to try to win the game, whether it was 3-1 or more, we were out and I do not regret trying to do something about that. It does not make this defeat any less difficult to take, though.”

Meanwhile, the attempt to win on Saturday may have to be made without the services of skipper Derek McInnes. The knee injury he picked up in Saturday’s derby against Dundee flared up again last night and he had to come off at half-time.

He is now struggling to make the trip to Dumfries, though Lee Mair, who needed stitches in a head wound during the second half, should be fit.

“I am shell-shocked, if you want to put it that way and I have never been so embarrassed,” said the man who has so often been the United saviour with vital goals.

He almost got another one when the score was 2-1 in Rangers’ favour, but agonisingly saw his long-range effort early in the second half hit both posts.

That may have been a slice of bad luck, but McIntyre refused to make any excuses for this performance.

“There are certain moments in games that change the way they will go. There was my shot and a penalty claim we had, but, at the end of the day, we had 25 minutes when we played well and, other than that, we were abysmal.

“And, if you want to say ‘what about this moment or that moment for us?’ — what about Rangers in the first half? They could have had a lot more goals and Nick Colgan has had a good penalty save as well, so it could have been even worse.”

The experienced attacker admitted the result has put a dark cloud over preparations for Saturday’s Scottish Cup trip to Queen of the South — a tie that has become a must-win match for under-fire boss McCall.

“Saturday seems a mile away at the minute. Obviously, we are going to have to lift ourselves, but it’s hard to think about it just now.

“What makes this harder to take is that we’ve done well against Rangers in recent games. We know exactly what it takes to get a result against them. However, if you are not right against the Old Firm, you have no chance.”

“It’s good experience for them and their call-up is also good for the club,” said John.

Samson is a Kilmarnock player, but is presently on loan to Saints.

Meanwhile, striker Chris Hay received a dead leg in the reserve game against Raith Rovers and is doubtful for Saturday’s home friendly against CIS Cup finalists Motherwell (2 pm).

The trialist winger who showed up well against the Kirkcaldy outfit is likely to get another outing.

Only the West Stand will be open and prices are £10 for adults and £5 for concessions.

Saints will name a large pool for the game, while the Steelmen are expected to field first-team men.