| United will need a big improvement on displays that have seen five goals conceded against Falkirk and Rangers in the last two outings. As well as reminding his players of that, however, boss Craig Levein has highlighted the path to glory the cup provides.
“I’m always excited when the cup comes around because, for teams outside of the Old Firm, it is the best chance of silverware,” he said. “It’s still a long, hard road to get there and we are only at the start of it with a very hard tie, but we are looking forward to tonight.”
And, when he tells his players what is required, Craig will point to what happened at Ibrox on Saturday before old bad habits led to defeat.
“For half-an-hour, I got the reaction I wanted after Falkirk and we played very well. Tonight, it is about doing that for 90 minutes and giving ourselves a good chance of setting up a tie at Inverness. We’ll be boosted by having Lee Mair and particularly Barry Robson available, and I will be looking for an improvement from those who played at Ibrox.”
Home fans will also get their first look at Irish striker Jon Daly — Sean Dillon was not signed in time for this round — but he will not be partnered by top scorer Noel Hunt.
“Noel was really only doing us a favour coming on against Rangers and there is no way he is ready for a full game. I think it will be a couple of weeks before he is and the most we can expect from him right now is probably 20 minutes.”
Meanwhile, although defender Lee Wilkie cannot be considered tonight because he was still out on loan at Ross County last week when the tie was originally scheduled, he could be in contention for a place at Kilmarnock on Saturday.
“Lee’s definitely coming on and, as it’s no secret I have not been happy with the defending, he will be competing if he is doing well,” he added.
Supporters tonight will be handed a voucher worth up to £10 off the cost of next term’s season ticket. Alternatively, fans can use the voucher to gain a £5 reduction at the next home SPL game against Dunfermline. |
