Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
No fuss Kosta the right way
USUALLY Kosta Gadzhalov is the quiet man around Dens Park, going about his business without a fuss — but on Saturday he stole centre stage.
The defender battled through the Inverness defence to rise and meet Tom Hateley’s free-kick delivery, heading in what turned out to be a vital winner for his side.
It was only his second goal for the club — his first coming last season against Dundee United in the infamous Doon Derby, endearing him to the Dark Blues faithful.
The Bulgarian has become something of a cult figure for Dundee fans, partly because of that goal but you suspect it’s also because you don’t really hear much from him.
The centre-back seems to just get on with his football, doing his job of defending well and being ready to play when called upon.
And that attitude is something every club needs in their squad according to former Dundee centre-half and Tele columnist Lee Wilkie. “He’s done well,” said Wilkie. “He’s come in and defended well and scored his goal on Saturday, you can’t ask for much more.
“Defensively he does his job but if he can pop up in games now and again and grab a goal then all the better — that’s a bonus.”
And the quiet nature of the Bulgarian reminds Wilkie of a former team-mate of his from across Tannadice Street, Darren Dods — a centre-back pairing that helped Dundee United get to the 2008 League Cup Final.
Wilkie added: “Being quiet can be the best way to go about things.
“Darren Dods was the same way — he did his job, nothing fancy, won his tackles, won his headers. He scored some goals, too.
“He was a quiet man at the back but there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.
“You need boys like that in a club, guys that get on with the job and don’t cause too many problems.”
Gadzhalov has mainly been a squad player for Dundee since joining the club on a free transfer in January 2015.
But, of late, the 27-year-old has enjoyed his best run in the starting XI since his first few weeks at Dens, coinciding with Dundee’s upturn in fortunes.
Since making his first appearance of the season in the 2-0 loss at Hearts in