Dundee

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Malachi Boateng admits Dundee want to cap their impressive return to the Scottish Premiership by securing European football.

The sixth-place Dens Park side begin their post-split fixtures at home to Celtic on Sunday knowing that fifth spot will enough to ensure Dundee's first European campaign since 2003.

"It is definitely there for us," midfielder Boateng said.

"As a group we obviously want to strive for more and look up the table so it is definitely achievable for us.

"I think it is a good incentive to have, obviously Europe is something that a lot of the boys pushed for at the start of the season but we will just keep on playing our game and there is no pressure on any of us to do it.

"The season is not over, we have got five games to go, so no one is relaxed on holiday or anything, just very composed and taking it game by game."

Manager Tony Docherty says his Dundee players feel a "huge sense of achievement" over securing a top-six place, but insists they won't ease off in the final five games as they now target European football.

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Tony Docherty insists his touchline ban won't hamper Dundee's attempts to upset Premiership leaders Celtic on Sunday.

The Dark Blues boss will serve a one-match suspension after picking up his fourth yellow card of the season in the goalless draw at Aberdeen earlier this month.

"I am disappointed but it doesn’t effect preparation too much in terms of all the work we do during the week and prior to the match," said Docherty.

"I have brilliant staff - Stuart Taylor, Scott Paterson - and they will deputise in that respect.

"We will have a line of communication. We are very close and discuss every fine detail during the week, game-plan, so we are all very much on the same page.

"It is all about the players, it is all about the game. We have not had a game for quite a while now, so we have spent a lot of time on the grass in terms of planning, we know the kind of game-plan we will need to execute to give us a chance against a really top opponent.

"We take great pride as a staff that the players know their jobs before they go on to the pitch so it is just reinforcing messages and Stuart is more than capable, he has experience of doing that."

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Dundee manager Tony Docherty has been speaking to the media before Sunday’s Premiership visit of Celtic.

Here are the key points from the press conference:

• Docherty confirmed he will serve a touchline ban against Celtic after picking up a fourth booking of the season for his "wee tussle" with Graeme Shinnie against Aberdeen recently.

• He says it doesn’t change anything regarding Sunday's match, with all the preparation done during the week, and he has "absolute faith" in the players and his coaching staff to carry out the game-plan.

• Having got into the top six despite being the newly-promoted side, there is no chance his team will ease off as they now chase down a European place in a season that has been "all about ticking off objectives".

• Captain Joe Shaughnessy will have surgery on his ruptured ACL early next month. Docherty says the squad are "absolutely gutted" for the defender and "anything we are doing between now and the end of the season, we will be doing it for Joe".

• Celtic are a "fantastic football team" and will be tough, with Docherty seeking a performance similar to the one his side produced against Rangers last time out to give themselves an opportunity.

• Other than Shaughnessy, there are no fresh injury issues.

Dundee plan to build new training complex at the city's Riverside Drive (The Courier), external

Read the rest of Friday's Scottish gossip.

• Dundee have lost their last nine league meetings with Celtic; only from October 1965 to October 1971 have they ever had a longer such losing run against the Parkhead side (13).

• In all competitions, Celtic are unbeaten in 42 meetings with Dundee (W36 D6) since a 2-0 defeat in May 2001. Only against Dumbarton (50) are they on a longer ongoing unbeaten run.

• Both of Dundee’s last two league games have finished 0-0; not since February 2022 have they gone three games without scoring in the Scottish Premiership.

• Celtic have scored exactly three goals in each of their last four league games (W3 D1), their longest run of scoring 3+ goals in the league since March 2023 (6 in a row).

• No player has scored more goals as a substitute than Celtic’s Adam Idah in the Scottish Premiership this season (level with Adam Le Fondre), with four of the Irishman’s seven league goals coming from the bench.

It's a tough start to top-six life for Dundee as they welcome league leaders Celtic to Dens Park on Sunday afternoon.

But Tony Docherty's side can take heart from their last outing, where they held Rangers to a goalless draw while showing their quality on the ball.

Would you stick with the same side? Pick your team here.

With their place in the top half of the Premiership assured, Dundee will have had plenty of positives to mull over during their weekend off.

But there is absolutely no way anyone at Dens Park will be taking their foot off the gas and letting their minds wonder to thoughts of summer sun beds.

The Dark Blues will be determined to do more than simply make up the numbers in their remaining five games.

Tony Docherty will feel his side are more than capable of taking points off their top-six rivals over the coming weeks, and they still have Europe in their sights.

Dundee are currently sixth in the Premiership, just two points behind fifth-placed St Mirren.

If the Dens Park side can catch their Paisley counterparts and finish fifth themselves then they will be able to dig out their passports for a crack at European football.

That is because the two Scottish Cup finalists - Celtic and Rangers - are both already guaranteed European football next season.

It is pretty impressive for Dundee to even be in the European conversation, given that this time last year they were plying their trade in Scottish football’s second tier.

They have upset the odds on many occasions so far in this campaign, and you wouldn’t bet against them doing it again and getting their hands on that Euro prize.

Dundee defender Joe Shaughnessy has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a knee injury. (Courier - subscription), external

We asked you which of Dundee's out-of-contract players you'd been keen to keep beyond the summer.

And there appears to be a recurring name or two...

Steve: Ideally we'd love to keep Beck, despite his youthful over exuberance at galloping forward too often. However my number one choice for keeping, pardon the pun, is McCracken. What a difference he's made.

Roberto: Tony Docherty and his staff certainly know a player. They've all been useful. In reality, we should try for Bakayoko, Dodgson and Donnelly. In Fantasyland we would sign Beck for another season... and then get Bakayoko, Dodgson and Donnelly.

David: For me, McCracken and Bakayoko are two certainties for next season, with a hope we can maybe retain Beck if we get Europe. They’ve been integral to our season, but the tricky part is keeping McCowan and Cameron, who will no doubt be in hot demand from down south. The recruitment drive is Tony Docherty’s biggest challenge yet.

Jim: It would be great to get Beck back but I won't hold out too much hope. McCowan and Cameron on longer term contracts. I think we need a central defender and a more prolific forward but I'd keep Bakayoko.

Iain: Need to be holding onto Bakayoko, I think he's been a wee gem. Would love to have Beck back next season as I think he has so much more to offer, but it'll be likely if he returns to Scotland, it'll be to Glasgow.

Dundee expect summer interest in midfielder Lyall Cameron. (Courier - subscription), external

Celtic have been given a reduced allocation for Sunday's Scottish Premiership match away to Dundee. (Herald - subscription), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish Gossip

With several players out of contract in the summer, clubs up and down the country are considering who they want to be involved next season.

For Dundee, they are set to watch a host of loan players head for the exit door - including Owen Beck, Amadou Bakayoko, Malachi Boateng and Jon McCracken.

Who would you like to keep, and who would you be happy to wave goodbye to? Click here to have your say.

Dundee are keen to make Sierra Leone striker Amadou Bakayoko's stay at Dens Park a permanent one after his goals helped secure a top-six position. (The Courier)

Read the rest of Monday's gossip.

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Owen Beck has been named as one of the 11 players of the season in the PFA Scotland's Premiership team of the year.

The left-back, who was on loan at Dens Park from Liverpool, made 25 appearances for the Dark Blues before picking up an groin injury

The PFA Scotland team of the year is voted for by players.

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Dundee's pitch problems are "unacceptable" for a Premiership club, says former Scotland striker Lee Miller.

Miller claims the issue is not a new one, backing Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell's view that there's a lack of "fairness" in terms of financial output on facilities.

The Dens Park side were fined by the SPFL on Thursday following a series of postponements because of waterlogging.

"I was at the first game of the season, Dundee against Motherwell up there," Miller told BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"I walked through the turnstiles and was told to keep my ticket because it was potentially going to be called off.

"And for the first game of the season, for a top-flight club, that's not acceptable. The Dundee pitch hasn't been good for years.

"There's always a couple of areas that get bogged down. But for that to be potentially called off the first game of the season, they knew their pitch was bad.

"Stuart Kettlewell obviously got a good bit of publicity in terms of him making his point [on the state of Dundee's pitch].

"He makes a good point in terms of if Motherwell and Dundee are going for a particular player - they're fishing in the same pond essentially - Dundee can offer more money because they've not spent it on the pitch.

"Motherwell spent fortunes on the pitch to get it right, it's really not fair to be honest."

We asked for your thoughts after Dundee showed their quality with an impressive goalless draw with title-chasing Rangers.

Here's a taste of what you had to say:

Karen: Dundee's tactics were perfect. What a fantastic performance. Best I have seen Dundee play all season. They went toe-to-toe with Rangers and basically didn't allow them to gain ground or pick up momentum. At the same time, they created chances of their own. Well done.

Steve: Incredible performance and effort from the team when you consider the opposition probably spend more on catering than we do on players. Love to see the stats on Tiffoney, what a lion.

Brian: Things are bad when Clemente has to say Dundee were lucky. Rangers were poor, often playing the long ball. Dundee were well-organised defensively. McCowan, Cameron, Sylla, McCracken and Dodgson were outstanding and the rest played well and more than competed with ‘unlucky’ Gers

Dave: Dundee were resilient and played a lot of good football. Rangers never really troubled them.

Gary: After all the Rangers talk of ‘unprofessionalism’ & making the game in this country look bad, Dundee put in a camera-worthy performance while the Ibrox side continued to wilt under the pressure of a supposed title race. Dundee showed they fully deserve top-six football while Rangers choose to greet about inconvenience & matters conspiring against them.

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Luke McCowan believes Dundee were "unlucky" not to take three points from Wednesday's goalless draw against Rangers.

Tony Docherty's side have secured a top-half finish in their first season back in the top flight, and McCowan insists they now go into every game believing they can win.

"It was hard," he said. "They had a lot of possession. But we just knew when we got it we had to believe in ourselves.

"The message was just to keep a clean sheet and take our chances. We were a wee bit unlucky at the end.

"It's a massive collective, everyone has played their part this season. The message with five games to go is just to keep pushing. The gaffer sends the message we don't need to fear anyone."

McCowan credited the continuous hard work taking place behind the scenes at Dens Park, and says Dundee were buoyed going into the game by Rangers dropping points against Celtic and Ross County recently.

"Ross County getting the victory [against Rangers] on Sunday gives us belief," the 26-year-old said.

"It's credit to the players and staff behind the scenes who are working their bums off.

"We haven't been good enough against the Old Firm this year but I thought we were superb."

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Were you at Dens Park tonight as Tony Docherty's side gained a valuable point in their pursuit of European football for next season?

Have your say here.