Hartley makes game-time the Dundee priority

Dundee’s attempt to make sure they pick up where they left off begins with a friendly at Arbroath tonight.

Manager Paul Hartley has prioritised game-time for his players after giving them a full week off.

He will be hoping that they can hit the ground running in their Scottish Cup tie against St Mirren and wants to minimise the risk of ring-rust by the time that match comes around on January 21.

Then it will be back to league business, with the Dark Blues looking up the table rather than down after their impressive 3-0 Hogmanay defeat of St Johnstone.

One man particularly keen to get going again is Faissal El Bakhtaoui, who scored in the Tayside derby.

“For me, that was the best performance of the team since I’ve been here,” the former Dunfermline man said.

“We’re feeling good to come back and go for the top six. I was happy to come back and score my goal as well.

“It was a good way to finish off the break. After it we need to push on after that good performance.”

Darren O’Dea and James Vincent should both be back in the squad after missing the Saints game.

Meanwhile, there will be a Dundee legend in the Arbroath squad after Rab Douglas agreed to stay with the Red Lichties through to the end of the season.

The 44-year-old signed in October and was due to leave this month.

However, manager Dick Campbell has persuaded the former Scotland man to remain as back-up to Ricky Gomes until the end of the campaign.

Campbell said: “I am delighted that Rab is staying with us.

“I was not sure if he would so I had been making alternative plans, but when they did not work out we had a chat and Rab agreed to stay on. He will continue to push Ricky and I am delighted about that.”