Luton Town draw ‘a very worthwhile exercise’ – Goodwin

Jim Goodwin believes Dundee United’s final pre-season game against Luton Town was the “perfect” test before their Scottish Premiership return.

The Tangerines drew 2-2 with the English Championship side on Friday night, and there were plenty of positives for the manager.

“I thought it was perfect, it was everything that we were looking for really,” he told club media after the draw.

“We’ve had games recently in the League Cup against lower-league opposition and we’ve not really been tested against what we would class as a Premiership opposition.

“We knew they would enjoy periods of the game with good possession, so we tried to liken this game to one of the bigger boys in our league. It was going to test our shape, really work us in the key areas we need to get better in, which is that high press we’re looking for.

“I don’t think we got picked off too many times, so it was a very worthwhile exercise.”

United’s Premier Sports Cup progression is out of their hands after suffering the opening game defeat to Falkirk, but Goodwin is pleased with the development in the team since then.

“The transition that the team has made in the three weeks has came on leaps and bounds,” he added,

“Overall, I’m really pleased and satisfied with the recruitment business we’ve done and delighted the players have bought into what we want to do, and that’s playing on the front foot.”