Source: FOOTYMAD
Mixu Getting It Right
Peter Houston likes what he sees happening at Kilmarnock Dundee United manager Peter Houston is not surprised to see Kilmarnock confound their predictors of doom as Mixu Paatelainen has created the SPL's form team. Houston watched Killie beat Hearts a fortnight ago and went away thinking they looked like a side which should sit easily in the top six. Paatelainen is working pretty much with the same set of player he inherited from Jimmy Calderwood in the summer. He has added Finland international Alexei Eremenko to the squad which has been a masterstroke and Houston has nothing but admiration for the job his Killie counterpart has done so far. He said: "I have said all along that outwith the Old Firm, anybody can beat anybody. That's the way the league is this year and Kilmarnock are showing that just now. I saw their good run coming because I saw them for myself at Hearts and they were brilliant that day. They were down the table, but I remember thinking they looked like a top six team and they have kept that form going. I looked at their team from the other night, we had Stevie Campbell there and we had Dave Bowman watching them on Saturday against St Johnstone at Perth. The reports from those games were impressive, but there are only three players new to the team. They have brought in Eremenko, Ben Gordon and the lad (Mohamadou) Sissoko, but the rest of them have been playing for Killie for years. I think Mixu has done really well and he has got the shape of his team the way he wants and is using the his players well. He has taken the squad he inherited, added a few players and is getting the best out of them." United lost to St Mirren on Wednesday after producing a performance Houston described as one of their worst of the season. United's form has been patchy this season but Houston has always watched his players bounce back from adversity and is backing them to do the same again. He said: "We keep taking the same boys who have done really well. I thought they played well against Hamilton and in stages against Hibs, and they are grinding out results, so while I was disappointed on Wednesday night I have not forgotten that. We were not hungry enough and I thought St Mirren were hungrier and that's something I can't label my players with very often." United are without Craig Conway, who is to have a knee operation on Tuesday and will be out for around two months, while Darren Dods, Scott Severin and Mihael Kovacevic are also ruled out. Midfielder Danny Swanson, meanwhile, could be in line for a comback. He has been back in training after receiving a facial injury in an alleged assault last week. Editor Ger Harley (ger@scottishfitba net)Admin Team (admin@scottishfitba net)This is ScottishFitba Net
