No clubs have made a move for Shankland, insists Mellon
By NEIL ROBERTSON
LAWRENCE Shankland might be viewed as one of the most coveted strikers in the land, but Dundee United boss Micky Mellon insists the club have had no enquiries about his availability.
The prolific striker has not played since the opening day of the season after picking up an ankle injury. Yet he continues to be heavily linked with a move away from Tannadice.
French Ligue 2 side Guingamp, who previously tried to snap up Aberdeen’s Sam Cosgrove for a fee of over £2million, have reportedly shifted their interest to Shankland and are understood to be preparing a bid.
However, Mellon is adamant there has been no communication from any club about the Scotland front man, who is contracted to United until 2022.
‘There hasn’t been any contact, I have never had a phone call and, at this moment in time, (neither) has the football club,’ said Mellon, whose team host champions Celtic in a teatime kick-off tomorrow.
‘I can’t be any more sincere with you than that. You think that sometimes managers will sit in front of you and try to bat you off but, take me as read, as I sit here we have not had any contact from anybody about Lawrence.
‘We love having Lawrence here and he is a talented player but I’ll go back to what I said because I want to put an end to it — we have had absolutely no contact from anybody about him — none.’
Mellon wouldn’t necessarily be the first point of contact from potential Shankland suitors, of course. That would most likely be the club’s sporting director Tony Asghar. However, the manager insists that no one has been in touch with him either.
‘Absolutely no contact with Tony Asghar,’ he added.
The supporters are desperate for Shankland to return to action, and some might even have the chance to see him do so next month after the Scottish Government revealed plans to allow a limited number of fans back into stadiums from September 14.
‘It’s great news that it looks like fans will be coming back,’ said Mellon.
‘Football with fans is what it’s all about. It will be terrific to get supporters back and I am really looking forward to having them in the stadium backing us.
‘Common sense will tell you that, in order for football clubs to grow, you need finances and part of that is getting fans through the door.
‘So I’d imagine it will have a positive impact on that front but, as a manager, it’s about having that backing from the stands.’
Before that happens, Mellon’s men have the small matter of a visit from Celtic to navigate.
Mellon had hoped to be in the stands at Celtic Park to run the rule over Neil Lennon’s side on Tuesday night when they hammered Icelandic side KR Reykjavik 6-0.
That visit didn’t come to fruition but the United boss has more than enough information to know how tough a test the Hoops will provide.
‘We tried to get into the Celtic game but we couldn’t get tickets,’ he said.
‘Celtic told us UEFA are not allowing anyone in to watch the games but, with the technology you have now, we have been able to watch all the matches they’ve had recently.
‘Whenever you play the champions in any country, you know the challenge will be a big one. But it’s something you want to be involved in and get excited about.
‘We will be encouraging the players to get involved in all games, so this is an opportunity to play in a fantastic match against the champions.
‘We have to make sure we do things right to give ourselves a bigger chance. There are different ways of doing it, from the experiences I have had of playing against big clubs in the past. We’ll give it a good go.’