BETFRED CUP

Dundee United are far from the finished article but the encouraging thing is that they realise that’s the case.

Manager Ray McKinnon has stressed after encouraging results over both Cowdenbeath and Inverness that they still have work to do before the Championship campaign starts on August 6 against Queen of the South.

For example, he still has to settle on a central defensive partnership, with three different combinations lining up for the three cup games thus far.

The left-back position will look an extremely vulnerable area if Paul Dixon’s injury keeps him out for any length of time, but the hope is that it won’t.

Also, there is still room for improvement in attack, particularly when it comes to linking up with the rest of the team.

The great thing for United, however, is that they have a manager who is fully aware of what needs to be done.

He would be helped by the recruitment of another central defender, whether or not they can get a player or two off the books.

The midfield pairing of Willo Flood and Stewart Murdoch looks solid and is already allowing others to flourish further forward.

Perhaps most exciting of all for the fans is the arrival of Dutch playmaker Nick van der Velden, who looks like he can be a stand-out at Championship level.

So it so far so good for United, with just a wee bit of room for improvement in the week and a bit left before the start of the league campaign.