{"id":45546,"title":"good win, b.A.A.d footy","description":"A tactical deep dive into St Mirren's struggles against similar styles of play in the Scottish Premiership. Misery Hunters' Andrew Christie breaks down what needs to change ahead of Jim Goodwin's return to Paisley with Dundee United, examining how Saints can overcome the tactical stalemates that have defined their season against similar opponents.","content":"

\"ngdsbfiu3jkjf7mapsi39lxfqsd0hh8xacjxgu8avcvbzrzf.jpeg.jpeg?w=1140&v=2\"In October 2022 St Mirren played Dundee Utd in the first ever VAR assisted game at the SMISA. As a result, I always associate United with the start of the new times. Being dragged into football\u2019s new world. Progress<\/em> in italics so italic it sounds mocking.<\/p>

For the most part, the new world in Paisley has been\u2026 aye it's been pretty good. European football, historic consecutive top-six finishes, record points totals and a manager who has the fans believing.<\/p>

But for all our progress, there's a fundamental issue threatening to derail our season. The modern Scottish Premiership, outside the Old Firm, is dominated by teams built on similar tactical foundations. High press, transition-focused football, with an emphasis on organisation, athleticism and intensity. It's created a league where matches between similar sides often descend into battles of attrition the types of which make you wonder if the old boy who sits in front of you, chain smokes fags and screams \u201cFORWARD\u201d all game might actually be onto something.<\/p>

This is where St Mirren's problems lie. Two points from 24 in games against Motherwell, Dundee, Dundee United and Kilmarnock tells its own story. We're struggling to find ways to win when games get dragged into that tactical quicksand, when two similar approaches collide and quality gets suffocated. In a league where European places could be decided by fine margins, our inability to grind out results in these fixtures is becoming a serious concern.<\/p>

Saturday represents more than just silver-foxed, silver-coined Jim Goodwin's return to Paisley. It's an opportunity to show we've developed the ability to find different ways to overcome opponents. In games where teams mirror each other so closely Stephen Robinson's men need to show they can break the reflection.<\/p>

\"yo5smm4c4mtoofitwy1tmqeqdk2rr70m04gydcyg6ll31mcq.jpeg.jpeg?w=1140&v=2\"<\/p>

Both St Mirren and Dundee United come into this game fresh off the back of familiar performances of the old Positives To Be Taken dance following trips to Parkhead.<\/p>

The three previous meetings between Saints and United have been bad times. Bad quality. Bad vibes. The first league game was decided by a late Emmanuel Adegboyega goal. The second league game was decided by a late Emmanuel Abegboyega goal and some officiating that still makes my cranium have A Bit Of Heat In It. The (terrible) League Cup tie was decided by a set piece.<\/p>

Dundee Utd currently sit third in the league. And you have to say they are good for that position. Goodwin and his team have bolstered a squad of SPFL stalwarts with exciting loanees and talents from down south. In Sam Dalby they have the Premiership\u2019s top scorer. Ryan Strain (who missed the early stages of the season due to a healing back tattoo of the Wunderbar floorplan) appears to be delivering on the promise that saw Utd pick him up. If we\u2019re talking about ex-Saints, special mention must be made to Declan Gallagher - none of us could have predicted this renaissance when he left Paisley.<\/p>

Credit to Goodwin where it\u2019s due though (a phrase I physically got a stitch writing) - for all the stick he's historically taken about game management, his in-game tweaks have been the difference in both league meetings between us this season. Whether it's tactical shifts bringing Glenn Middleton into play, or Louis Moult appearing off the bench to win penalties, United have shown an annoying knack for finding ways to win these matches when Plan A does not work.<\/p>

The pattern in both games has been clear: United's compact defensive shape forcing us wide, resulting in a stream of crosses that their back three happily deal with all day. Our pressing game gets nullified by their willingness to go long, and the midfield becomes an attritional mud-fling, or bypassed completely.<\/p>

To break this cycle, Robinson needs to find ways to play through United's defensive block rather than around it. Greg Kiltie could be crucial here - his ability to find pockets of space between the lines and link play is exactly what we've been missing in these types of games.<\/p>

The other key battleground will be set pieces. Both previous games have ultimately been decided by second balls from corners - the type of situations where concentration matters more than quality. With United's height advantage at the back, we need to be smarter about how we deliver balls into their box.<\/p>

\"lvg2uwgn9euqw2m9wqsn1uf5tgpm2afx1whbt6fns3gwnd8f.jpeg.jpeg?w=1140&v=2\"But perhaps most importantly, we need to rediscover our clinical edge. Creating half-chances isn't the issue - it's making them count. Someone needs to start putting these chances away. Two shots on target from sixteen attempts, as we managed in our tie in October, simply isn't going to cut it against a Goodwin side that specialises in tight, often one goal wins.<\/p>

The next few weeks will tell us everything about whether this St Mirren side can push on from being a good team to becoming a genuinely consistent force in the league. That journey starts on Saturday. Time to show we've learned how to win the games that matter, that we can find ways to overcome the tactical stalemates that have defined these fixtures. Otherwise, we risk finding ourselves trapped between two worlds - too good for the old battles but not yet able to fully grasp the new opportunities ahead.<\/p>

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Author\u2019s bio<\/p>

Andrew Christie is a football writer with a gorgeous brain and huge thinking. You can find him on twitter<\/u><\/a>, bluesky<\/u><\/a> or here<\/a>. <\/p>","urlTitle":"goodwin-b-a-a-d-footy","url":"\/blog\/goodwin-b-a-a-d-footy\/","editListUrl":"\/my-blogs","editUrl":"\/my-blogs\/edit\/goodwin-b-a-a-d-footy\/","fullUrl":"https:\/\/miseryhunters.co.uk\/blog\/goodwin-b-a-a-d-footy\/","featured":false,"published":true,"showOnSitemap":true,"hidden":false,"visibility":null,"createdAt":1736540190,"updatedAt":1738880932,"publishedAt":1738880932,"lastReadAt":null,"division":{"id":106606,"name":"Misery Hunters"},"tags":[],"metaImage":{"original":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/r10s9cxy6hun6eojy7cqt3ds7lijh4a33p4owh7l1olbdhdh.jpeg","thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/r10s9cxy6hun6eojy7cqt3ds7lijh4a33p4owh7l1olbdhdh.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/r10s9cxy6hun6eojy7cqt3ds7lijh4a33p4owh7l1olbdhdh.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"metaTitle":"","metaDescription":"","keyPhraseCampaignId":null,"series":[],"similarReads":[{"id":15740,"title":"Tangerine Dream","url":"\/blog\/tangerine-dream\/","urlTitle":"tangerine-dream","division":106606,"description":"This week saw the return of Premiership football after a long, dark, cinchless and ultimately joyless Christmas period. The break couldn\u2019t have come at a better time for St Mirren, allowing Jim Goodwin and his team the chance to hit the reset button on a run of form that saw us register 12 league games without a win.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/itwy5sfkpqs9vmoij8ofcggbaq2qmjzvhe6wkgdgoibbznyp.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/itwy5sfkpqs9vmoij8ofcggbaq2qmjzvhe6wkgdgoibbznyp.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":19357,"title":"(Re)Taking a Stand","url":"\/blog\/re-taking-a-stand\/","urlTitle":"re-taking-a-stand","division":106606,"description":"Money. Depending on who you ask, it\u2019s either the root of all evil , what makes the world go round, or the surname of the greatest goalkeeper that South Ayrshire has ever produced. It\u2019s probably all three","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/7l9aoxqmdlktw6ovekyziv15j0jid754jt9ywuawmdyismwo.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/7l9aoxqmdlktw6ovekyziv15j0jid754jt9ywuawmdyismwo.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":38808,"title":"The Back Five #14","url":"\/blog\/the-back-five-14\/","urlTitle":"the-back-five-14","division":106606,"description":"Misery Hunters writer Andrew Christie takes you on a journey through the past seven days of St Mirren Football Club.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/1tubcgglclxgmjcsbqhdeyxzll6m6rwslr4bohjorwxjua2n.png.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/1tubcgglclxgmjcsbqhdeyxzll6m6rwslr4bohjorwxjua2n.png.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0}],"labels":[]}