Robbie changes have brought stability to Utd

SINCE Dundee United’s slide towards relegation started around this time four years ago, i n the battle to first save their top-flight status and then regain it, at Tannadice change has become the norm.

If, for the sake of argument, a crushing 4-0 defeat at Hamilton in mid-August 2015 can be taken as the point when the alarm bells really starting ringing for the Tangerines, since then change has been the only constant.

That outing at New Douglas Park, when the manner as well as margin of defeat caused such a shock, sparked a 10-game run without a win that, as well as marking the end for boss Jackie McNamara in the midst of it, saw the team crash to the bottom of the league and never recover.

McNamara was replaced by Mixu Paatelainen and, despite a string of expensive signings, the Finn never came close to steering the team clear of the drop, meaning it was no great surprise when his contract was terminated as the drop was confirmed just before the end of the season.

Next up in the manager’s chair was another old boy, Ray McKinnon. Despite a tight budget, he managed to undertake an overhaul of the squad and came close to steering his boyhood favourites back to the Premiership at the first time of asking, only to lose narrowly to Hamilton in a promotion play-off final.

It should be said, with stronger financial backing he might well have been a success but, when the following campaign did not start as well as planned, McKinnon was replaced by Csaba Laszlo.

He only got the team as far as the play-off semi-finals and when, despite more major squad changes, he suffered a bad start to what should have been his first full campaign, he was dismissed after just 10 months.

Enter, i n October l ast year, Robbie Neilson and even more alterations to the playing and coaching staff.

That’s illustrated by the fact that, from his first game in charge to his most recent, both against Partick Thistle, only three of the starting line-up in each fixture was the same, while, of the