The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Dark Blues’ injury list shrinks
Positive McCann quietly confident for return to face former club
Dundee boss Neil McCann admits he is delighted there is finally some light at the end of the tunnel as injuries start to clear,
Front men Craig Wighton and Marcus Haber will still be on the sidelines for some time with their knee and thigh problems.
However, others such as skipper Darren O’Dea, Sofien Moussa, Julen Etxabeguren and Kosta Gadzhalov have all returned to fitness alongside new signing, former Inverness centre-half Josh Meekings who has been working his way back from a knee injury.
With other recent additions, former Athletic Bilbao defender Jon Aurtenetxe and on-loan Shrewsbury Town striker A-Jay Leitch-Smith, also taking part, the manager was able to fully implement a lot of his ideas at training ahead of tomorrow’s game against Rangers at Ibrox.
McCann said: “We had a second opinion on whether we can accelerate Marcus’s recovery but we can’t so he will be out for a bit longer term. So we will just have to be patient with it.
“Kosta is back training but just with some of the younger boys today.”
Dundee boss Neil McCann insists his players are brave and positive enough to go to Ibrox tomorrow and secure a memorable result against Rangers.
It will be a return to a former happy hunting ground for the ex-winger who spent five years at the Glasgow club.
The 43-year-old won a whole host of trophies when he was at Rangers, however, McCann insists that is in the past and instead all he is focusing on now is his Dundee players and what they can achieve at Ibrox.
McCann said: “I had some great times there, winning many trophies and making loads of good friends.
“I loved going back there with Sky TV but I’m so looking forward to going there with my team.
“Personally, though, I’m irrelevant because I’m taking a team there to try to take points off them and get a result for ourselves.
“It’s important not to give their crowd a lift or any encouragement. So we have to be on it, right at it, from the start.
“One thing we won’t buckle from is being positive. That will always be the same.
“I think if you take no risks then sometimes you don’t get rewards, and we want to go to Ibrox quietly confident of getting a result.
“They’re under no illusions about trying to go there, silence a crowd and get a positive result.
“I’m not going there frightened as that wouldn’t be fair to what we’re trying to do here to take this club forward. “We’ll need lots of bravery at Ibrox. “And I honestly do believe we’ve got a squad here that doesn’t have any fear.
“They’ll continue to grow and develop in terms of confidence.
“You need to be brave on the ball going to a place like Ibrox and I know that from my time there as a player.
“Rangers play in a certain way that will allow us opportunities to get on the ball.”
Tomorrow will be the first time McCann has gone head-to-head with Rangers boss Pedro Caixinha and he admits he is looking forward to pitting his wits against the passionate Portuguese.
McCann said: “I actually love Pedro’s passion.
“I think it’s infectious but when his team is going forward they can be got at. So that’s what we have to aim to do when we go there on Saturday.
“I’ve had no real dealings with Pedro since he came to Scotland.
“I will meet him for the first time on Saturday so I’m really looking forward to pitting my wits against him.
“Pedro clearly has an idea of how he wants them to play having gone with the four.
“With the shape that he plays clearly they can be open. We have to try to exploit that on the day.”