DMAA

Yes, and Dundee United were in very poor form. They were on fire when we played them.

Happy with that. A very encouraging start from Gio given our performance before he came in. We are wasteful in front of goal but we don’t really have natural goalscorers in the team so it’s an ongoing thing. A young Kris Boyd would get well into the 20s in this team.

Without the goal scoring touch he’s doesn’t offer much for me.

With that much pressure you’re eventually due a bit of luck. We do need to be better at finishing off moves though.

Aribo has been brilliant again. Looks our best player at present.

We’re looking good but we need a goal

His movement creates so many opportunities.

Too small to play in Scotland 😀

First domestic clean sheet in 9 attempts.

Massive relief, definitely feels like a let off but it’s another opportunity for Gio for learn about his players. Hopefully a change or two to the lineup for the next game.

His end product has been non-existent.

Morelos is very lucky to be starting ahead of Sakala at the moment.

That’s a very simplistic summary, it’s taking one thing in isolation rather than looking at the knock on effect on other positions. Our current system relies on width from two fullbacks who don’t always have the freedom they want to get forward due to defensive responsibilities. The centre mids can be a bit restricted too. A 3 at the back system allows attack-minded full backs like Tav, Patterson and Barisic to play as wing backs. 4-3-3 can sometimes result in an isolated striker too and a lack of players making good runs in goal scoring positions, 2 strikers goes a long way to resolving that problem. We saw Celtic adopt this system to great effect in the second half of the 19/20 season.

Conte uses it too doesn’t he. I generally prefer a back 4 but a good manager can always use a 3 at the back based formation effectively.

"Worth discussing" is a low bar and I'd say yes, largely due to Patterson being on bench when he is one of our best outlets on either wing. Tavernier Goldson Bassey/Helander Patterson Barisic Kamara Jack/Davis Kent/Hagi/Aribo Roofe/Sakala Morelos A team along those lines could do pretty well in games where it's mostly a matter of breaking down a low block, it doesn't look solid enough for tougher opposition without Helander at the back though. There are some obvious problems with it, by accommodating Patterson you are negating a lot of Tavernier's threat, though with the low block we play most weeks and given how much of the ball defenders have these days I think he could contribute quite a lot in breaking the lines and the opposition wouldn't know who should be picking him up. A second problem is how solid are you defensively with potentially two full backs in your back three. The third big one is that we do currently have a number of attacking midfielders and it's not easy to fit them into this system.

I haven't watched Mayo but you'd have to say someone with only 2nd tier experience is unlikely to be good enough. His clean sheet record when he played CB this season is outstanding though and that is very encouraging, especially as the season has gone on.

Another encouraging win, considering it was played on plastic. Hopefully another confidence boost for Sakala too who could surprise me and play a bigger role than I expected this season. Roofe's injury certainly gives him the chance to do just that. I still see him as a centre forward though and not a wide player. His dribbling and overall technical game isn't good enough to flourish there, his strength is using his pace to stretch the play and scoring goals one way or another.

Not to mention a certain header. Old firm goals are so memorable that they go a long way for fans. Katic was never good enough for Rangers, average at best on the ball and a terrible habit of ball watching and losing his man.

It certainly seems a good appointment. It can be a good age for an assistant too, a young guy who is full of enthusiasm, energy and is hungry to prove himself and doesn't have a reputation as a player to fall back on. Maybe harsh but a bit of contrast to McAllister?

I’m nervous with Bassey at CB because I don’t think he’s a natural there but he was fantastic last night. So much hunger and desire, great to see. That kind of thing is infectious.

It’s a good start. This is the team who lost to Hibs a few days ago so it was never going to be perfect. We looked more creative last night but we do lack a goal scoring touch up front. There aren’t many goals in the three of Aribo, Kent and Hagi and that showed last night with very good chances not taken.

Great effort from Hagi to get that assist, after a shaky start from him. A very good first time finish from Morelos. Sometimes he takes too many touches, when he’s at his best he just finishes it. He’s clearly aware of the criticism he has received from fans judging by that celebration.

Disappointed in the lineup tbh but hopefully we see a better attitude from them tonight.

Ryan jack has come off the bench twice now and is hopefully close to being ready to start games. Our goals conceded numbers will definitely improve when Ryan Jack is starting every game.

McCrorie is not the answer anyway. His stats are terrible and his performances at Livi were a massive disappointment. I think McLaughlin is a safe pair of hands and his record is good. McGregor has been playing this season based on reputation alone. The position needs investment and maybe we can improve on McLaughlin. I don’t find it an easy position to assess tbh.