Jim Goodwin laments 'sloppy' Dundee Utd as League Two Spartans say upset

Jim Goodwin has regretted a 'very, very disappointing' start to the season as his Dundee United side came under fire after a humiliating Viaplay Cup group stage loss to new League Two Spartans.

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Over 1,000 Tangerines fans gathered at Ainslie Park hoping to see their side kick off the new campaign on a high after a demoralizing season last time out that ended in relegation to the Championship.

But there was more misery for United as they lost 1-0 to a side who played in the fifth tier last season, with Blair Henderson scoring the only goal in the 11th minute before Tony Watt saw a second-half penalty saved by Spartans goalkeeper Blair Carswell.

"It was sloppy from our point of view," boss Goodwin told BBC Scotland. "In the first half, the build-up and the pace were very slow.

"We allowed the Spartans to get behind the ball too often instead of playing the forward pass a bit earlier. The second half was better, we had a bit more control.

"The problem is that when you give a lower league team a goal-scoring advantage, they have something to hold on to.

“I have to give the Spartans big credit, but this is very, very disappointing. The minimum we should walk away from here with is a clean sheet.”

Goodwin and his players were subjected to a torrent of abuse from their full-time fans.

"I think the reaction of the fans is expected, it's natural," said the manager. "It doesn't matter which club you are at, the fans expect you to beat opponents in the lower league.

"Unfortunately, today we failed. There is no hiding the cracks from us. We are still a brand new team, it's still early.

"We just have to do better in the last third, which is the hardest part of the game. We were going into good areas but the end product, the quality of the cross, just wasn't there.

"These are things we will improve. We will work hard to get it right by Tuesday (at Partick Thistle)."

Goodwin was determined to keep things in perspective, adamant that the shock defeat would not prompt him to make drastic changes to his plans for the upcoming campaign.

"It's the first game of the season," he said. "Of course we wanted to start on a positive note and it's extremely disappointing to lose the game, but it's very early.

"The fans have every right to show their frustration at the end, we are all disappointed with the result but we will work harder to make sure everything goes well in the future. It will take time but we will get there. "