MATCH PREVIEW | LIVINGSTON (H)

We host Livingston at Tannadice for our final pre-split fixture as the Terrors look to record three wins on the bounce for the first time this season.

Get your teeth into our match preview for closer analysis on our opposition for Matchday 33 of the cinch Premiership!

Livingston's Story of the Season

The Lions flew out of the traps at the beginning of the season, securing impressive wins over both Edinburgh clubs, Aberdeen and ourselves during the opening months.

In addition to this, David Martindale's men went agonisingly close to claiming a famous three points at Ibrox in October until a stoppage-time John Lundstram strike cancelled out Joel Nouble's opener at the death.

This left the West Lothian outfit fluctuating between fourth and fifth, with a considerable buffer between the chasing pack, and it looked as though they would secure a place in the top six for the third time in four seasons - a remarkable feat for a club of relatively small stature in the Scottish football eco-system.

However, Livingston experienced a severe dip in form after the World Cup break, and now find themselves in a position where anything but a victory at Tannadice this weekend coupled with favours from other teams around the league will consign them to the bottom half of the table.

Five wins from their 17 league matches since the restart allowed Hibernian and St Mirren to strengthen their grip on the final slots in the top six. In that time, they have conceded 30 goals - almost two-thirds of the total for the entire season.

To add to their league woes, Inverness Caledonian Thistle dumped Livingston out of the Scottish Cup after an emphatic 3-0 win on the road.

Despite the apparent doom and gloom looming over the Tony Macaroni Arena, Livi are actually four points heavier than the same stage of the 2021/22 season.

Tale of the Tape

The sides have clashed three times already this season. The aforementioned first meeting saw Martindale's men claim a slender 1-0 win at Tannadice, just four days after United saw off AZ Alkmaar in the first leg of the UEFA Europa Conference League Third-Qualifying Round.

Just four weeks later, the Terrors progressed to the Quarter-Final of the ViaPlay Cup thanks to goals from Steven Fletcher and Ian Harkes at Almondvale, with a late debut header from Kurtis Guthrie not enough to save the hosts' League Cup campaign. 

Then in March, Jim Goodwin's first match on the road as United boss resulted in a share of the spoils, with Aziz Behich's second-half volley bringing a run of seven straight defeats to a conclusion in sub-zero conditions.

February 2021 brought our most recent win over Saturday's opponents on home turf.

Adrian Sporle set the tone by opening the scoring within 60 seconds, then a Lawrence Shankland brace ensured the three points would remain on Tayside despite the dismissal of Peter Pawlett in the first period. 

Watch the highlights from that encounter below!

Facts and Figures

Only Aberdeen and Celtic have outperformed their expected points stat more than Livingston, who have a ten-point disparity in their favour.

60% of their goals conceded have been away from home.

The Lions have received the joint-most red cards in the cinch Premiership - averaging one every four games with seven dismissals in 32 matches. The last player to be given his marching orders was Jack Fitzwater against Hibernian on Matchday 28.

Since records began, Livingston have never recorded three consecutive league wins at Tannadice.

Full-back Nicky Devlin has played more outfield minutes than any player in the division - with 3,088. His nearest challenger is Rangers skipper James Tavernier on 3,059.

Talking Tactics

Martindale tends to use a variation of a 4-2-3-1, however, is not averse to switching to a back five away from home. That being said, a conservative line-up is not to be expected this weekend with Livingston in desperate need of maximum points.

They tend to be more effective against teams who employ a high block as they can send Route One balls over the top for pacey frontman Bruce Anderson to hunt down. They average a league-high 52 attempted long balls per 90.

For comparison, United make 67 more short passes in a typical Premiership match than Livingston.

On the turnover, those nearest the ball aggressively counter-press before dropping into their compact defensive shape if possession is not recovered immediately. Ross County are the only team with more interceptions than Livingston this season.

Predicted XI: George, Devlin, Fitzwater, Boyes, Montano, Shinnie, Holt, Pittman, Bradley, Anderson, Nouble.

One to Watch

Joel Nouble is one of Scottish football's hottest properties.

A product of both Chelsea and Millwall's youth systems, the towering talisman spent the majority of his senior career playing non-league football.

After the culmination of a fairly mediocre spell with Aldershot Town, Nouble headed for West Lothian looking for the spark which would ignite his goalscoring touch, and there is no doubt he has discovered it.

He enjoyed a scintillating loan stint with Dick Campbell's title-challenging Arbroath side in the Championship before being recalled early in January 2022, before going on to make a groundbreaking impact during his first full season in the top flight.

With seven goals and three assists to his name in 25 matches, Nouble has suitors north and south of the border despite putting pen to paper on a new contract last month.

The 27-year-old looks certain to depart the Tony Macaroni Arena in the summer in what the Lions hope will be a lucrative deal. 

Despite his blatant physical presence due to his large stature, Nouble's main threat comes with the ball at his feet whilst facing up defenders.

He averages more than six attempted dribbles per 90 and has made 85 touches in the opposition penalty area during 2022/23.

On target last time out against St Johnstone, the London-born frontman will be desperate to fire the side which revived his career into the promised land of the top six.

Joel Nouble rampaging through the Hibs defence#cinchPrem | ???? #LIVHIB ???? pic.twitter.com/RcMKHpattD

— SPFL (@spfl) March 3, 2023

It is therefore evident why Wyscout ranks him in the Premiership's top ten centre forwards. 

WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY

Hear from both Jim Goodwin and David Martindale ahead of this week's match!