Jim Goodwin vents his main Rangers 'frustration' as Dundee Utd boss wanted 'cynical foul' to deny Tom Lawrence

Goodwin says his team should have stopped Lawrence entering the box - at all costs.

Frustrated Jim Goodwin admitted a slow start cost Dundee United their unbeaten Premiership run.

The United boss didn’t really get out of the blocks and that saw them lose the only goal of the game to Rangers’ Tom Lawrence. Goodwin saw his team huff and puff but knew they never really recovered. “Obviously we didn't start the game well,” Goodwin declared. "The shape of the team wasn't working early on. I think that's where the goal ultimately comes from. We were a little bit bare in the middle of the pitch.

“The frustrating thing is that it actually comes from our throw-in initially. We need to make a tackle at some point, whether it's a cynical foul or something like that to prevent Lawrence from entering into the penalty box. That's the disappointment.”

United came close with efforts from Kristijan Trapanovski and a Ross Graham header but accepted his side didn’t do enough to merit a share of the points. He said: “Trapanovsky's got one that takes a deflection by the post for the corner. Then I think there was one over the top, in behind Tavernier, that unfortunately the ball just wouldn't come down for him to enable him to get a shot away.

“So we are disappointed, but can't be too hard on the players in terms of what they put into the game. It's disappointing to lose our unbeaten run here.”

Goodwin knows his side can’t feel sorry for themselves as they now have to pick themselves up for a big Premier Sports Cup quarter-final at Motherwell on Friday. He stated: “But we've got another massive game coming up on Friday evening in the quarter-final of the Cup to get ourselves prepared for. I suppose it could have been quite easy for heads to go down, conceding such an early goal, with the players that keep on pushing throughout.

“Yes, the goal we conceded is that it's not been like us all season. We've got a great defensive record, we had three clean sheets coming into the game.

“We know the threat that Rangers carry, especially with Lawrence in the pocket. There was no reason for me to change the system because of how well it's been working up to now. But obviously the opening 15 minutes or so wasn't going the way we had anticipated at all. So that's why we changed the shape and I thought we looked a lot better after that. But yes, like I said, I won't be too hard on the players. The commitment and the effort and everything was there.

“We certainly didn't look a soft touch. I actually thought, had the ball fell a little bit kinder to us in and around the box for set plays and long throws, then things might have been different. But Rangers were the better team on the day.”