United’s Kuate shrugs off wonderstrike

DUNDEE United may have identified the weapon that could take them back into the Premiership this season – at least in the mind of the man concerned.

The lethal nature of Wato Kuate’s left foot was demonstrated with the explosive 61st-minute strike which killed off Morton’s Premiership play-off bid on Friday night,k although the engaging Cameroon-born, Portuguese 21-year-old who arrived at Tannadice back in March reckoned that his strike, which came in a 3-0 win at Tannadice that sealed a 5-1 aggregate success, was no more than business as usual.

“I think that was one of the best goals I’ve scored in the top level of my career,” he said. “Whoever knows me will know what I have already done in football. For Wato, it is normal to score that kind of goal.”

If so, the assembled press corps owe him an apology because we were unable to find any evidence of a previous one.

In truth he may play football for many a year and never produce a more spectacular finish than that 30-yard strike which whistled past a helpless Jamie McGowan and the celebration that followed it was almost as memorable as he took the opportunity to thank supporters that he described as having been “so lovely to me”.

Kuate said: “When I struck it, I was following the ball and when I realised it was in, I heard the voice from the fans and I just turned round and thought Wato ‘ what are you going to do?’. I didn’t know what to do really and I just started running because I thought to myself ‘this goal must be for them’, so I ran to the stand behind the goal and watched them celebrate. It was unbelievable, amazing really.”

Under contract only until the end of the season he could have been forgiven had his principal objective been to catch the eye of the United management and/or others in the few weeks he had to make an impression. Instead, Kuate said, he was concentrating solely on the task at hand.

“I’m just focusing on the play-offs,” he said. “When I signed, I said I wanted to make a story for the play-offs.

“I want promotion so I’m not even thinking about what’s going to happen to me personally. I’m respecting my contract until the end of the season.”

United now face Falkirk in the play-off final. The first leg is at Tannadice on Tuesday, with the return at the Falkirk Stadium on Friday.