A night under the lights || Motherwell vs Dundee United preview

Sometimes, matchdays are like buses.

You sit through international breaks, begging for the club game to come back. And it does; one a week, leaving you sat, wanting just a little more. Then weeks like this week pop up, with thin quick succession. I just don’t think the Fir Park faithful imagined how important these three games would be.

Dundee United: form, tactics, head-to-head

This one, the second of a crucial three, and an equally important one. Following a win on our travels, Motherwell now face at home, under the floodlights, a Dundee United side fresh off a comeback 3-1 victory themselves against our Hampden opponents St Mirren.

The Terror’s lined up in a like for like 3-5-2 matchup against the Buddies, with United’s starting XI seeming to be fairly settled, with the same 3 CBs all playing alongside each other (Keresztes, Esselink and Iovu all playing 14 games this season). Their Central midfielders also seem fairly stable (Sevelj, who at times has dropped into the defence, Camara and Sibbald), while going forward they have Dolcek (a player utilised more on the wing of the 5 man midfield, tracking back as well as pushing forwards), Fatah and Sapsford. However, against St Mirren, United favoured a start of Sapsford and Möller, with Fatah replacing the latter before scoring late on. 

United, on a stats level, seemed to maybe ride their luck a little. A low xG (1.4) on the surface showing a ruthlessness, and a side taking their chances. The goals coming from a brilliantly struck, low freekick from Sapsford, a penalty from Fatah and an outstanding finish from Sibbald from the edge of the box perhaps highlighting their finishing prowess, but also highlighting the fact they did not really offer many clear-cut chances. This against a St Mirren side who have, on the surface, a relatively better than average defence in terms of goals conceded in comparison to the league.

However, St Mirren had more of the ball (55%), more shots (23 to United’s 13, United conceding this to a team with the joint fewest goals scored in the league) and FAR more corners (12-4). Perhaps something Well fans can look at and feel a touch of optimism.

These stats perhaps show us a team that, having watched the Dossers this season, is a team we can get at. For me, the midfield will be where this game is won and lost. It’s no secret we have 2 deeper lying midfielders (Fadinger and Watt), and the onus will be on them to receive the ball, allow, even encourage, the press, then turn and quickly push forward through United’s regimented central trio. In my mind, I can already imagine a line of Fadinger- Watt, and in between our attacking midfield trio (be it Slattery, Said, Just, Tawanda, Charles-Cook), we will see Sibbald, Camara and Sevelj. Can we break through them, tease them forward into a press then turn, and get at them?

Recent history between the sides has largely swung in Motherwell’s favour — though our last meeting, a 1–0 defeat at Tannadice in February 2025, came in Michael Wimmer’s first match in charge. Before that, you’d need to go all the way back to 15 April 2023 for the previous time we lost to United, a 2–1 reverse after leading at half-time through Kevin van Veen, with Ilmari Niskanen and Jamie McGrath turning it around.

Since that game, Motherwell have generally held the upper hand. Each of our victories in that run has been by a single goal, with tight margins and a few draws thrown in for good measure - you’d have to go back to United’s 2–0 win in February 2022 for the last time either side won by more than one.

United fans will be hoping Dolcek can keep his impressive form going. Labelled as a midfielder (or winger depending on where you look), Dolcek is their highest scorer this season, and drives them forward. Sapsford had a difficult job this season, replacing talisman loanee Sam Dalby, yet he seems to be another Aussie taking to Scotland well, matching Dolcek’s return so far this term (including the equaliser against St Mirren). Sibbald scored the decisive 3^rd and made it 2 for the season. A stalwart of Scottish football, playing with Falkirk and Livi previously, and a player with bags of experience, he is, in my mind, the gel that holds a lot of this new look United side together (14 new signings in the summer).

As for familiar faces in the side, this United side features a lot of new players joining the Scottish leagues. Sibbald aside, there aren’t many that may be obvious to some fans unless you dive in stats/squad lists or sit and have a few pints and the pub shouting a few names you remember. Ryan Strain formerly of St Mirren, Luca Stephenson returning to the club after his loan spell last season, and youth academy product Ross Graham (who has featured for Elgin City, Cove Rangers and Dunfermline Athletic on loan) would maybe be the main characters you’d recall. Will Ferry and Kristijan Trapanovski being returning faces from last season, and are players who on their day, are pivotal in what United do.

Askou on Oxborough's injury, Slatts returning, and confidence

A noticeable change we will see (that won't really effect the starting XI) is the loss of Aston Oxborough to a hand injury, sustained in the warm up at Livingston. This sees Matty Connelly return from his loan spell at Airdrie to take his place on the bench. Connelly enjoyed regular football, playing 11 times for the diamonds, keeping 3 clean sheets, in an otherwise tough start to the campaign. JBA did mention that the Ox has "looked better and better in training, and really picked up on our way to play football" (sic), which does bode well for the future of our goalkeeping department. While disappointing, thankfully this is the only change to the squad, with everyone else being "fit and ready".

Matty Connelly had been playing with SPFL Championship outfit Airdrieonians

This could be seen in the strength of the Motherwell bench against Livingston, with Askou even saying "we know some of them will be on the bench but could easily start". It has, certainly in my memory, been the strongest depth of a Motherwell side for time. Not only can we count on players coming off the bench and making a difference, but we can also continue to play football the way we have been playing, instead of having to drastically change our style, or formation, due to the loss of key personnel. The players also have to be at their best to retain their spot. To my mind, this is behind the resurgence of players like O'donnell, who knows he isn't secured a starting berth with Koutroumbis breathing down his neck.

 Another positive for the Well is the timely return of Callum Slattery. The form and style of play of our midfield has meant his absence hasn't been as noticeable as predicted, however it was a fantastic sight to see Slatts return at the weekend. And he showed us exactly what he can bring to the fold. His drive forward. The bite in midfield. Winning fouls. The killer pass to create our winner, followed by those scenes of jubilation (where yours truly was caught in 4k by the clubs cameras, thanks lads!). A fantastic return to action for our number 8. Thankfully, this lay off was deemed a precaution from a "small knock in training". Back in the thick of it, we'll be hoping to see Slatts kick on, in similar fashion to his previous return to action in January.

Slatts made it very clear the focus remains on United, with our Semi-Final on the horizon. Mentioning further the teams good performances in spite of injuries throughout, there is a definite need for one more good performance to follow to ensure involvement at Hampden. However, as Slatts put it himself; "It's nice to get plaudits for playing well, but to win games is...important, if we mix both together, it'll be a real good talking point." While the good football has been a fantastic watch, the results ultimately are the full stop. I'm sure we all believed the results would come, and hopefully this is the upturn. What better week than this to get them.

A buoyant Well, going into this after our dramatic last-minute win against Livingston, facing a United side who needed 2 late goals themselves to get the 3 points against our Hampden opponents. This game has all the ingredients of a potential classic, but stats show it could be tight and cagey affair. A game which could be won and lost in the midfield. A team aiming to continue their climb up the table and travel to Hampden full of confidence, against a team who started slow, but have gathered good momentum with some good results, and could find themselves (results permitting) a point behind Celtic and 3rd in the table with a victory.

Wednesday night, under the lights, in the colder months, with high stakes for all.

What more could you ask for?

What a sight on a Wednesday night (photo credit: The Well Society)