St Mirren will be attempting to get back to winning ways on Tuesday after 11 games without one when they travel to Tannadice Park to face Dundee United.
The hosts also ended 2021 in poor form, which they will want to recover to kick-start 2022, as they have failed to gain a victory in their previous six matches.
Match preview
© Reuters
Dundee United will likely want to forget the manner in which they finished the year with six winless performances, losing the last five within that run.
The Terrors slipped down the table following those results, and they kickstart 2022 in seventh place, but a victory would have the potential to see them climb into the top half of the table, depending on other results.
Tam Courts witnessed his team lose 3-1 to Hibernian on Boxing Day, which was their final game before the winter break, which is a result they will be hoping to respond to.
However, they will have to improve their offensive performances in order to make that happen, as they are the second lowest-scoring team in the entire league.
Their lack of attacking threat was clear when they faced St Mirren earlier on this season as the two teams battled out to a goalless draw.
© Reuters
The visitors will be looking for a lot more than just a draw due to the fact they have gone 11 matches without a win, which has seen them dragged into the relegation battle.
St Mirren currently sit ninth in the league table, but there are only three points separating them and the bottom two, which places a lot of pressure on each match.
Jim Goodwin's team have struggled both offensively and defensively this season, having only scored 18 goals throughout the campaign, while they have leaked in 31 at the other end.
The Buddies have had two tough fixtures in their previous outings as they faced Celtic and Rangers back-to-back, and they were able to take a point away from the Hoops.
However, their most recent victory saw them defeated 2-0 by the current league leaders, and that is something they shall be aiming to respond to on Tuesday.
- D
- L
- L
- L
- L
- L
- D
- L
- L
- L
- L
- L
- L
- D
- L
- D
- D
- L
- L
- D
- L
- D
- D
- L
Team News
© Reuters
Kerr Smith is no longer available for Dundee United after he secured a transfer to the Premier League, joining Aston Villa within this window.
However, the Terrors should be boosted by the return of Marc McNulty, as the on-loan forward has returned to training ahead of this match.
St Mirren's Jamie McGrath has been heavily linked with a move away from the club this month, but at the moment he is still an option for the Buddies.
Curtis Main will likely lead the line alone for the team on Tuesday, with Goodwin opting to have five defenders at the back to provide some extra cover.
Dundee United possible starting lineup:
Siegrist; Freeman, Neilson, Mulgrew, McMann, Sporle; Harkes, Meekison, Mochrie; Watson, Clark
St Mirren possible starting lineup:
Alnwick; Tanser, Dunne, Shaughnessy, Fraser, Flynn; McGrath, Erhahon, Power, Henderson; Man
We say: Dundee United 1-1 St Mirren
Neither team is heading into this game in good form, with both having runs without a victory that they will be keen to finish on Tuesday night.
However, with each squad lacking in confidence, they could end up sharing the points for a second time within this campaign.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a St Mirren win with a probability of 38.42%. A win for Dundee United had a probability of 34.51% and a draw had a probability of 27.1%.
The most likely scoreline for a St Mirren win was 0-1 with a probability of 10.69%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.25%) and 0-2 (6.86%). The likeliest Dundee United win was 1-0 (10.01%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.84%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with an 8.2% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that St Mirren would win this match.
