Dundee United vs Arbroath Predictions
Dundee United welcome Arbroath to Tannadice on Saturday as the Premier Sports Cup group stage continues.
The Tangerines suffered a shock midweek defeat at Montrose, and another tight contest seems likely on Saturday.
I have my money on under 2.5 goals scored, while I also fancy Arbroath to steal a point.
Both Teams Struggle to Score
- Dundee United have seen under 2.5 goals in their last 5 matches
- Dundee United scored an average of 0.33 goals per game in their last 6 matches
- Arbroath have seen under 2.5 goals in 4 of their last 5 matches (competitive fixtures)
- Arbroath scored an average of 0.66 goals per game in their last 6 matches (competitive fixtures)
Dundee United Dominate the H2H
Dundee United and Arbroath have met eight times since 2019, with the Terrors winning seven of those encounters and Arbroath claiming one victory.
Their most recent meeting came in a friendly earlier this month, which finished in a 1-1 draw.
United Stunned at Montrose
Dundee United return to Tannadice this weekend after suffering a miserable 1-0 defeat against Montrose on Tuesday. Graham Webster’s first-half strike proved the difference as the League One side scored a shock victory at Links Park.
A toothless United side struggled to break down their lower-league opponents, with Webster capitalising on a defensive error by Ross Graham to secure a famous home win.
Jim Goodwin’s side had opened their League Cup campaign with a largely unimpressive 1-0 victory at Stirling Albion. Zach Sapsford’s stoppage-time penalty secured the points at Forthbank.
A lack of quality in the forward areas has been a big concern for the Terrors since the end of last season. United scored just two goals in their last six outings.
Goodwin’s men finished the campaign by failing to win any of their last four Premiership fixtures, and have won just one of six games since April.
Arbroath Face Step Up
Arbroath travel to Tannadice after kicking off their League Cup campaign with a 2-1 victory against The Spartans last weekend.
Goals from Andy Winter and Ryan Flynn ensured a winning start to the season for the Red Lichties.
The Championship side followed up that positive result with a strong showing in a narrow 2-1 friendly reversal against Premiership opponents Hearts last weekend.
David Gold’s side enjoyed a strong pre-season, scoring four goals in back-to-back wins against Dunipace and Brechin.
The Red Lichties are looking to build on a strong campaign, which saw them finish third in the Championship before missing out on Premiership promotion following a play-off semi-final defeat to Dunfermline.
Dundee United vs Arbroath Team News
Dundee United: (4-2-3-1) Jack Walton; Joshua Rawlins, Iurie Iovu, Ross Graham, Owen Gilligan; Vicko Sevelj, Dario Naamo; Julius Eskesen, Dylan Tait, Zach Sapsford; Lachlan Rose.
Jim Goodwin is expected to make changes to his first XI after Tuesday’s disappointing defeat at Montrose.
New signing Mehdi Merghem is pushing for his first competitive start, while Jesse Randall is being managed carefully following his involvement with New Zealand at the World Cup.
Zac Sapsford should continue to lead the attack, with recently recruited striker Lachlan Rose also in contention to make his competitive debut.
Speaking after the midweek defeat at Montrose, Goodwin recognised the difficulty of finding top form in the Premier Sports Cup group stage.
“I think it’s normal for such a new group of players to not quite have that understanding and not quite gelling the way that we would like at this early stage, but I would still expect us as the Premiership team with the quality of players that we have to have at least scored a goal or two,”
“When you give lower-league opposition the kind of gift that we did in the first half, it allows them then to drop really deep and get 10 or 11 men behind the ball in the second half."
"They defended their box for their lives, and they deserve a lot of credit for that."
Arbroath: (4-4-1-1) Jordan Pettigrew; Scott Stewart, Craig Watson, Thomas O'Brien, Colin Hamilton; Scott McGill, Craig Beattie, Brody Paterson, Ryan Dow; Michael McKenna; Gavin Reilly.
Head coach Gold is unlikely to make too many changes from the side that performed well against Hearts last weekend.
Arbroath have strengthened their squad this summer with the arrivals of Andy Winter, Tom Beadling, Scott McGill, Scott Robinson and Charlie Fox as they look to build on last season's impressive Championship campaign.