Jim Goodwin expecting less turnover of players at Dundee United next summer

Jim Goodwin will look to tweak rather than make wholesale changes to his Dundee United squad next summer.

The Tannadice boss made 14 new additions to his group before the transfer window closed.

However, ahead of Saturday’s visit to Hibernian in the William Hill Premiership, Goodwin, who signed a new 12-month rolling contract on Wednesday, spoke about less turnover next year.

“What we’ve had to do over the last couple of seasons in terms of the rebuilding of the squad, that’s been a real challenge for us,” he said. “I suppose, in terms of the volume of players that we had to bring in and going forward, you would hope that you’re not going to be doing 14 players again next summer.

“I think the signings that we’ve made, they’re all players that we believe have got room for improvement and future development, obviously, and in the future it’s just about adding to that.

“I think everybody knows the stature of the club, in terms of the history of Dundee United.

“We know we’re competing against really good sides in the Premiership, but at the same time, I think there’s a lot more to come from us as a club and from this particular group of players as well, and hopefully, that will come to fruition over the course of the campaign.”

The former St Mirren and Aberdeen boss took over at Dundee United in March 2023 but could not prevent relegation to the Championship.

United returned to the top flight at the first time of asking and last season earned a place in the Conference League qualifiers, where they lost to Rapid Vienna in a penalty shootout last month.

“Really pleased, obviously,” said Goodwin, about his new deal.

“It’s been something that’s been bubbling away in the background for a number of months and I’m delighted we’ve finally got everything concluded. I signed it yesterday and was absolutely delighted to do so.

“I’ve really enjoyed the last couple of seasons here at the club. In that time I’ve built up some great relationships with the board of directors, the owner, chief executive and, obviously, my background team as well.

“We’ve done some really good things over the last two years and hopefully there’s plenty more good to come in the future as well.

“You can’t stand still and be content with what’s going on.

“We are continuously trying to make improvements and we’ve done that since I first came through the door. The changes that we’ve made on the player front, we’ve made some changes to the background team as well.

“We’ve added some really good people in terms of the recruitment department and things like that.

“So we’re continuously trying to strive and trying to make progress on and off the field, and I think that’s been evident with the success that we’ve had in a short period of time.”