Dundee United F.C. season 2007-08
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| Dundee United | |
| Season 2007-08 | |
|---|---|
| Manager | Craig Levein |
| Chairman | Eddie Thompson |
| League | Clydesdale Bank Premier League |
| Final league position | 5th |
| Scottish Cup | Fifth round |
| CIS Insurance Cup | Runners-up |
| Top goalscorer | League: Noel Hunt (13) All: Noel Hunt (18) |
| Highest home attendance | 13,613 (vs Celtic, 22 May) |
| Lowest home attendance | 5,845 (vs Inverness CT, 01 Dec) |
Dundee United finished the Scottish Premier League 2007-08 season in 5th place with 52 points. Noel Hunt was the top scorer with 18 goals.
Contents |
[edit] Review and events
The pre-season period began with two new permanent signings at the club, Polish goalkeeper Lukasz Zaluska and Darren Dods having signed deals in June. Irishman Willo Flood also arrived from Cardiff City on a season-long loan deal. In July, former Ajax youngster Prince Buaben signed after a successful trial and was joined by a second Polish keeper, Grzegorz Szamotulski, in time for the league season. Englishman Jordan Robertson became the second long-term loan signing when he arrived from Sheffield United in late August.
A number of players who were out of contract left the club following the end of the 2006–07 season. Lee Mair signed a pre-contract deal with Aberdeen and Derek Stillie moved to England to pursue a law career. David McCracken and Collin Samuel were both released. Also leaving the club were a number of younger players who had failed to earn extensions to their contracts. These were Gregg Burnett, Barry Callaghan and Ross Gardiner. All had played at least once for the first team.
The first game of the season was home to Aberdeen in the SPL, and ended in a 1-0 victory.[1] As the season progressed, United maintained their high league table position, ending 2007 in 4th place.
The club lost to Rangers in the CIS Insurance Cup final in March, losing on penalties. The Scottish Cup campaign was ended by St Mirren in the fifth round.
[edit] Chronological list of events
This is a list of the significant events to occur at the club during the 2007-08 season, presented in chronological order. This list does not include transfers, which are listed in the transfers section below, or match results, which are in the results section.
- 26 July: Played a pre-season friendly against Barcelona, losing 1-0 to a last-minute Thierry Henry goal. Minutes earlier, Barry Robson had seen a legitimate header wrongly disallowed.[2]
- 4 August: United win the opening league match of the season for the first time in eight years. It was only their second opening day win since the 1992-93 season.
- 6 September: Cameroonian striker Patrick Suffo arrives on trial.[3]
- 18 September: French midfielder Morgaro Gomis signs a two-year contract extension.[4]
- 8 November: Craig Levein picks up the Premier League Manager of the Month award for October.[5]
- 10 November: Lee Wilkie follows manager Craig Levein by picking up the Premier League October Player of the Month award.[6]
- 4 December: Gary Kirk leaves Raith Rovers to replaces Tony Docherty as club coach, after Docherty moved to St Johnstone.[7]
- 28 December: Goalkeeper Grzegorz Szamotulski delays his departure and extends his contract by a month until the end of the transfer window.[8]
- 29 December: Motherwell captain Phil O'Donnell collapses during the 5-3 win over United and is pronounced dead thirty minutes after the match.[9]
- 7 January: United turn down a £175,000 bid from Blackpool for top scorer Noel Hunt.[10]
- 18 January: Jordan Robertson is recalled from his loan spell by Sheffield United.[11]
- 21 January: Manager Craig Levein's role is extended to include director of football.[12]
- 23 January: United reject bids from Burnley and Nottm Forest for captain Barry Robson.[13]
- 14 February: Chairman Eddie Thompson appoints his son Stephen as chief executive.[14]
- 21 March: The East Stand at Tannadice is renamed after chairman Eddie Thompson.[15]
- 8 April: French striker Joel Thomas arrives for a ten-day trial[16]
- 12 May: Referee Mike McCurry publicly admits that he got two decisions wrong in the match against Rangers, wrongly denying United both a penalty and goal.[17]
- 16 May: Australian defender Scott Jamieson arrives for a fourteen-day trial
- 20 May: The club submit an official complaint to the SFA following Mike McCurry's handling of the match at Ibrox against Rangers[18]
- 20 May: A second friendly is arranged against Barcelona with the 'rematch' scheduled for 26 July.[19]
- 26 May: The club announce the possibility of taking legal action against George Peat after the SFA president branded manager Craig Levein's earlier comments "criminal".[19]
[edit] Match results
Dundee United played a total of 46 competitive matches during the 2007-08 season,[20] as well as four first team pre-season friendlies. The team finished fifth in the Scottish Premier League.
In the cup competitions, United were runners up in the final of the CIS Insurance Cup, losing on penalties to Rangers. United lost to St Mirren in the Scottish Cup fifth round, after a replay.
[edit] Scottish Premier League
Source: BBC Sport website: Scottish Premier
a.e.t. = after extra time; agg. = aggregation score; pen. = decision by penalties.
[edit] Scottish Cup
| Home team | Score | Away team | Additional information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Source: BBC Sport website: Scottish Cups
a.e.t. = after extra time; agg. = aggregation score; pen. = decision by penalties.
[edit] CIS Insurance Cup
| Home team | Score | Away team | Additional information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Source: BBC Sport website: Scottish Cups
a.e.t. = after extra time; agg. = aggregation score; pen. = decision by penalties.
[edit] Player stats
During the 2007-08 season, United used 30 different players on the pitch. The table below shows the number of appearances and goals scored by each player.[21]
| No. | Nat. | Position | Player | Total | Clydesdale Bank Premier League | Scottish Cup | CIS Insurance Cup | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||
| 1 |  |
GK | Lukasz Zaluska | 18 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 13 |  |
GK | Euan McLean | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | |
GK | Grzegorz Szamotulski | 21 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2 |  |
DF | Sean Dillon | 39 | 2 | 32 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 3 |  |
DF | Christian Kalvenes | 23 | 2 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 4 | |
DF | Lee Wilkie | 37 | 4 | 30 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 5 | |
DF | Darren Dods | 39 | 2 | 32 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 8 |  |
DF | Daniel Grainger | 16 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | |
DF | Garry Kenneth | 20 | 1 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 24 | |
DF | Stuart Duff | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 |  |
DF | Mihael Kovacevic | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 6 | |
MF | Willo Flood | 43 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 7 | |
MF | Mark Kerr | 37 | 0 | 29 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 11 | |
MF | Barry Robson | 24 | 12 | 21 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 11 | |
MF | Jim O'Brien | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | |
MF | David Robertson | 24 | 6 | 19 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 14 | |
MF | Steven Robb | 13 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 15 | |
MF | Craig Conway | 19 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 16 |  |
MF | Morgaro Gomis | 43 | 1 | 35 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 17 | |
MF | Greg Cameron | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 |  |
MF | Prince Buaben | 29 | 2 | 23 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 23 | |
MF | Danny Swanson | 13 | 2 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | |
MF | Fraser Milligan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | |
ST | Jon Daly | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | |
ST | Noel Hunt | 43 | 18 | 35 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| 22 | |
ST | Jordan Robertson | 18 | 4 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 22 |  |
ST | Mark de Vries | 17 | 3 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 25 | |
ST | Eric Odhiambo | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | |
ST | David Goodwillie | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | |
ST | Johnny Russell | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
[edit] GoalscorersFifteen players scored for the United first team with the team scoring 64 goals in total. The top goalscorer was Noel Hunt with 18 goals.[21]
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[edit] DisciplineDuring the 2007-08 season, nine United players were sent off and 15 received at least one caution. In total, the team received nine red cards and 56 yellow cards.[21]
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[edit] Transfers
[edit] InUnited signed ten players during the season with an eleventh after the season had finished. Four players were signed on loan.
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[edit] OutFive players left United during the season, with a number of young players spending time on loan with lower league clubs. Two player also agreed moves at the end of the season.
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[edit] Playing kit
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The jerseys were sponsored for a second[50] (and final) season by Anglian Home Improvements (who again sponsored Motherwell). The sponsor logo is displayed as a simple font across the chest, with white logo for the home top and black logo on the change strip.[51] The shorts were again sponsored by Ole International after the Spanish property firm extended the deal for a second year.[52] The shorts logo is displayed on the right hand side, above the club badge.[52] The expiry of both deals at the end of the season means the club will have at least one new sponsorship for 2008-09, as the option of a third year of shirt sponsorship[50] was passed for a new one-year deal with JD Sports' Carbrini label for 2008-09.[53][54]
The club has no third strip, with the last third strip used in the 2002-03 season.
[edit] Awards
- Scottish Premier League Manager of the Month: 1
- Scottish Premier League Player of the Month: 2
- Scottish Premier League Young Player of the Month: 2
- Scottish Premier League Goal of the Season: 1
[edit] References
- ^ "Dundee Utd 1-0 Aberdeen", BBC Sport website, 2007-08-04.
- ^ "Henry strikes on Barcelona debut", BBC Sport website, 2007-07-26.
- ^ "Tannadice trial for striker Suffo", BBC Sport website, 2007-09-06.
- ^ "Gomis extends Dundee Utd contract", BBC Sport website, 2007-09-18.
- ^ "Levein nets monthly boss award", BBC Sport website, 2007-11-08.
- ^ "Wilkie wins October player prize", BBC Sport website, 2007-11-10.
- ^ "Szamotulski answers Levein call", BBC Sport website, 2007-12-28.
- ^ "Szamotulski answers Levein call", BBC Sport website, 2007-12-28.
- ^ "Motherwell captain O'Donnell dies", BBC Sport website, 2007-12-29.
- ^ "Dundee United dismiss bid for Hunt", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-07.
- ^ "Robertson makes Sheff Utd return", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-18.
- ^ "Levein given United director role", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-21.
- ^ "Dundee Utd reject Robson offers", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-23.
- ^ "United reveal new chief executive", BBC Sport website, 2008-02-14.
- ^ "Thompson gets Tannadice tribute", BBC Sport website, 2008-03-21.
- ^ "Striker Thomas on Tannadice trial", BBC Sport website, 2008-04-08.
- ^ "Rangers v Dundee United", SFA website, 2008-05-12.
- ^ "Dundee United lodge ref complaint", BBC Sport website, 2008-05-20. Retrieved on 2008-05-20.
- ^ a b "Barca face Hibs and Dundee United", BBC Sport website, 2008-05-20. Retrieved on 2008-05-20.
- ^ 2007/2008 - First Team Fixtures & Results. Dundee United FC. Retrieved on 2008-05-22.
- ^ a b c Dundee Utd 2007/2008 player appearances. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-05-22.
- ^ "Dundee Utd confirm Zaluska deal", BBC Sport website, 2007-05-31.
- ^ "Flood secures Tannadice loan deal", BBC Sport website, 2007-06-12.
- ^ "Dods seals move to Dundee United", BBC Sport website, 2007-06-22.
- ^ "New Prince arrives at Tannadice", BBC Sport website, 2007-07-20.
- ^ "Levein nets new Polish goalkeeper", BBC Sport website, 2007-07-25.
- ^ a b c "United seal Robertson loan deal", BBC Sport website, 2007-08-28.
- ^ "Robertson makes Sheff Utd return", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-18.
- ^ "Dundee United agree Swanson fee", BBC Sport website, 2007-09-28.
- ^ a b c Roache, Ian. "Tangerines’ future bright, says Levein", The Courier, 2008-01-31.
- ^ "Gretna's Grainger Tannadice bound", BBC Sport website, 2007-12-27.
- ^ "Dundee Utd to sign Foxes striker", BBC Sport website, 2007-12-28.
- ^ "Tangerines sign stopper Kovacevic", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-18.
- ^ "Dundee Utd sign striker de Vries", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-25.
- ^ "United seal O'Brien loan switch", BBC Sport website, 2008-02-01.
- ^ "United conclude goalkeeper deal", BBC Sport website, 2008-03-03.
- ^ Dey, Graeme. "United tie up ex-Dark Blue", The Courier, 2008-04-15. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
- ^ "Dundee United seal Robertson deal", BBC Sport website, 2008-06-03.
- ^ "McGuire and Proctor join Brewster", BBC Sport website, 2007-08-31.
- ^ "Partick loan switch for Cameron", BBC Sport website, 2007-10-26.
- ^ Goodwillie on loan to Raith Rovers. Dundee United FC (2007-11-01).
- ^ Marco on loan to Airdrie United. Dundee United FC (2008-01-01).
- ^ William Easton leaves United. Dundee United FC (2008-01-03).
- ^ "Duff finalises New Firm switch", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-17.
- ^ "Cameron on loan to St Johnstone", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-18.
- ^ "Szamotulski answers Levein call", BBC Sport website, 2007-12-28.
- ^ "Celtic complete capture of Robson", BBC Sport website, 2008-01-31.
- ^ "McLean makes switch to Saints", BBC Sport website, 2008-05-15.
- ^ "Robb quits Tannadice for Buddies", BBC Sport website, 2008-05-27.
- ^ a b Dundee United announces new shirt sponsor. Dundee United FC (2006-05-08).
- ^ Adults home top. Dundee United FC.
- ^ a b Ole International sponsorship extension. Dundee United FC (2006-05-08).
- ^ Roache, Ian. "United unveil new sponsor", The Courier, 2008-04-14. Retrieved on 2008-04-14.
- ^ Wood, Zoe. "JD Sports scores Scots shirt deal", The Observer, 2008-04-13. Retrieved on 2008-04-14.
[edit] External links
- Official site: 2007/08 Fixtures
- BBC - Club stats
- Soccerbase - Results | Squad stats | Transfers
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