Mellon mindset to ensure stiff test for Celtic
DUNDEE UNITED was always one of the fixtures which got my blood pumping as a Celtic player — especially away from home in front of the live TV cameras. It’s a shame there won’t be any fans because Tannadice always produces a great atmosphere. It was right up there with Ibrox and Tynecastle as one of my favourite away grounds.
It’s a stadium which produced so many good memories. One of my best-ever goals for Celtic was a scissor-kick volley in front of a packed away end during a 4-1 win in January 2016. The challenge for Celtic now will be to overcome a United team who look totally revitalised under Micky Mellon. He’s taken over from Robbie Neilson and the team have hardly missed a beat so far. Two wins and a draw from their first four games is a very decent start.
Perhaps the biggest compliment you could pay Mellon and his team is that they’ve done it without their best player. Lawrence Shankland has hardly kicked a ball so far this season. The United hitman has missed the last three games due to an ankle injury. His only appearance so far came against St Johnstone on the opening day. Huge credit to Mellon and the rest of the squad for continuing to get results in his absence. The key to their positive start to the campaign seems to be the mentality which the manager has drummed into his players. Mellon came up from England with a reputation as a brilliant man-manager and motivator and we’re already seeing signs of those skills coming to fruition at Tannadice.
United don’t have the mentality of a newly-promoted club. They have the mindset of a group of players intent on taking the club back into the upper echelons of the Premiership. Celtic will have to be somewhere close to their best to get the job done today. It will be a stiff test of exactly where they are at just now. United will pose them a far greater threat than KR Reykjavik did in the Champions League qualifier in midweek.
Celtic’s last domestic outing was the 1-1 draw at Kilmarnock a fortnight ago. With that in mind, it’ll be a blessing that Tannadice has a grass pitch rather than an artificial surface. These early weeks of the season are about Celtic finding their rhythm and generating some momentum as they try to navigate their way through the Champions League qualifiers. Going away from home and getting a good victory under their belt at a place like Tannadice would be the perfect way to build confidence.