I’M IN THE ZONE
McNamara has shut out chat on social media to focus on the job in hand
IT’S probably no bad thing that the only net concerning Jackie McNamara is the kind his Dundee United side f ailed to bulge at Hamilton last Saturday. Had the Tannadice manager been tempted to spend the past f ew days scrolling online for crumbs of comfort, he would have been bitterly disappointed.
In the wake of what was, by his own admission, the darkest day of his two-and-a-half-year tenure on Tayside, the faceless internet experts had it that he was a goner — whether of his own volition or by chairman Stephen Thompson wielding the axe. McNamara was undoubtedly psychologically bruised and battered by his young side’s first-half collapse in Lanarkshire.
Those who believe, though, that he hasn’t got the stomach to fight for his future have simply got him all wrong.
‘It’s very difficult,’ he admitted. ‘It’s probably a good thing I’m not on social media.
‘I get wee snippets coming back to me which are quite poisonous, but that’s part and parcel of the job.
‘That’s maybe why managers don’t last a long time in different jobs. I’m one of the longest serving and I’ve been here for two-and-a-half years.
‘Yes, (rumours got back last Saturday) the same as they did months ago — and a lot of other stuff but you just need to get on with it.
‘That’s the society we’re in. It’s social media, so it’s very difficult for people to control. It’s taking up a lot of people’s lives.
‘It’s society being reactive but I try and be proactive. I try not to react to what people think or say. If I did that, then I wouldn’t be doing my job.
‘I’ve just got to make sure I keep my focus and I am not distracted by other things which are nothing to do with me.’
For all he will clearly be in the home dugout when Celtic visit on league duty on Saturday, McNamara would not pretend t hat Tannadice is currently a happy place to be.
If the repeated sales of assets like Ryan Gauld and Stuart Armstrong had already put supporters’ noses out of joint, the suspension of youth supremo, Stevie Campbell, has further increased the levels of suspicion and acrimony.
The Federation of Dundee United Supporters’ Clubs issued a statement saying they were ‘very concerned’ by Campbell’s situation as the club began an internal investigation.
The 4- 0 hiding at the hands of Hamilton was the last straw for many — and, for all he believes he can turn things around, McNamara can fully appreciate the fans’ angst.
‘It’s never nice,’ he added. ‘It’s been like that for a while. I take criticism the same way I take adulation.
‘ It’s part and parcel of football. I’ve been in it for long enough to understand how it works.
‘It depends on how you handle things. My focus hasn’t changed. It is on getting the best out of the players.
‘I haven’t changed my approach since I’ve been here. I want to keep that moving forward.
‘I’m not going to start panicking because we’ve had one bad result.’
McNamara was remaining tightlipped over the current investigation involving Campbell, but hopes it can be concluded soon.
He said: ‘I think it’s difficult for me to comment. It’s an internal matter.
‘Obviously, I would like these things to be sorted so we can understand what’s going on.
‘I’ve seen some reports bringing me into it. But hopefully it gets sorted soon so that people can see what’s behind it.’
United’s new-look side are struggling to click so far this season and McNamara insists that change can take time.
‘Our team is young and we’ll make mistakes,’ he continued. ‘It takes time to gel together.
‘We can put Saturday down to a bad day at the office. A lot of things — like the goals we conceded — went wrong.
‘People look into things on the back of that and, as a result, a lot of people have jumped on the bandwagon.
‘It’s obviously up to me to put that right and we’ll be ready for Celtic this weekend.’
“I try not to react to what people say about me”