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1986–87 Dundee United F.C. season
| Field | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| club | Dundee United | |
| season | 1986–87 | |
| manager | Jim McLean | |
| chairman | George Fox | |
| stadium | Tannadice Park | |
| league | Scottish Premier Division | |
| league result | 3rd | |
| cup1 | Scottish Cup | cup1 result = Runners-up |
| cup2 | Scottish League Cup | cup2 result = Semi-finals |
| cup3 | UEFA Cup | cup3 result = Runners-up |
| league topscorer | Iain Ferguson (16) | |
| season topscorer | Iain Ferguson (28) | |
| prevseason | 1985–86 | |
| nextseason | 1987–88 |
The 1986–87 season was the 78th year of football played by Dundee United, and covers the period from 1 July 1986 to 30 June 1987. United finished in third place, securing UEFA Cup football for the following season. They reached the Scottish Cup final, only to lose after extra-time to St Mirren. The season is most notable for the club's run to the UEFA Cup Final, knocking out Barcelona, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Universitatea Craiova en route. United lost 2–1 on aggregate to IFK Gothenburg in the final.
Match results
Dundee United played a total of 67 competitive matches during the 1986–87 season. The team finished third in the Scottish Premier Division.
In the cup competitions, United lost in the final of the Scottish Cup to St Mirren and lost in the Skol Cup semi-finals. Swedish side Gothenburg defeated United in the final of the UEFA Cup over two legs.
Legend
| Win | Draw | Loss |
|---|
All results are written with Dundee United's score first.
Premier Division
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 August 1986 | Aberdeen | H | 2–1 | 10,910 | Gough, Redford |
| 13 August 1986 | Clydebank | A | 0–0 | 1,612 | |
| 16 August 1986 | Rangers | A | 3–2 | 43,995 | Gallacher, Redford |
| 23 August 1986 | Hearts | H | 1–0 | 11,068 | Hegarty |
| 30 August 1986 | St Mirren | H | 3–0 | 6,168 | Ferguson, Gallacher, Bannon |
| 6 September 1986 | Dundee | A | 2–0 | 12,079 | Milne, Bannon |
| 13 September 1986 | Celtic | H | 2–2 | 19,792 | Ferguson, Gallacher |
| 20 September 1986 | Hamilton Academical | A | 5–1 | 2,876 | Hegarty (2), Ferguson (2), Sturrock |
| 27 September 1986 | Hibernian | A | 1–1 | 5,407 | Redford |
| 4 October 1986 | Falkirk | H | 2–0 | 5,957 | Ferguson (2) |
| 8 October 1986 | Motherwell | H | 4–0 | 5,740 | Philliben, Ferguson, Wishart, Coyne |
| 11 October 1986 | Aberdeen | A | 0–2 | 14,922 | |
| 18 October 1986 | Clydebank | H | 2–0 | 5,314 | Auld, Bannon |
| 25 October 1986 | Hearts | A | 2–2 | 14,320 | Sturrock (2) |
| 29 October 1986 | Rangers | H | 0–0 | 20,171 | |
| 1 November 1986 | St Mirren | A | 1–0 | 3,930 | Ferguson |
| 8 November 1986 | Dundee | H | 0–3 | 11,733 | |
| 15 November 1986 | Celtic | A | 0–1 | 34,319 | |
| 19 November 1986 | Hamilton Academical | H | 3–0 | 4,280 | Clark, Ferguson, Sturrock |
| 22 November 1986 | Hibernian | H | 1–0 | 6,862 | Bannon |
| 29 November 1986 | Falkirk | A | 1–2 | 4,500 | Redford |
| 3 December 1986 | Motherwell | A | 2–0 | 2,312 | Page, Redford |
| 6 December 1986 | Aberdeen | H | 0–0 | 10,242 | |
| 13 December 1986 | Clydebank | A | 2–1 | 1,396 | Ferguson, Bannon |
| 20 December 1986 | Hearts | H | 3–1 | 11,749 | Sturrock, Bannon, Ferguson |
| 27 December 1986 | Rangers | A | 0–2 | 42,165 | |
| 6 January 1987 | St Mirren | H | 2-0 | 5,798 | Redford, Sturrock |
| 10 January 1987 | Celtic | H | 3-2 | 19,020 | Ferguson, Gallacher, Bannon |
| 24 January 1987 | Hibernian | A | 2-0 | 7,398 | Gallacher, McInally |
| 7 February 1987 | Falkirk | H | 2-1 | 8,804 | Ferguson, Gallacher |
| 14 February 1987 | Motherwell | H | 2-0 | 9,902 | Gallacher, Ferguson |
| 28 February 1987 | Aberdeen | A | 1-0 | 12,850 | Bannon |
| 7 March 1987 | Clydebank | H | 1-1 | 5,541 | Hegarty |
| 10 March 1987 | Dundee | A | 1-1 | 11,615 | Gallacher |
| 21 March 1987 | Rangers | H | 0-1 | 21,278 | |
| 28 March 1987 | Dundee | H | 1-1 | 12,220 | Glennie |
| 4 April 1987 | St Mirren | A | 1-2 | 2,538 | Redford |
| 14 April 1987 | Hamilton | A | 0-0 | 2,062 | |
| 18 April 1987 | Celtic | A | 1-1 | 23,798 | Clark |
| 25 April 1987 | Falkirk | A | 2-1 | 4,930 | Ferguson (2) |
| 28 April 1987 | Hamilton | H | 2-1 | 7,244 | Bannon, Clark |
| 2 May 1987 | Hibernian | H | 2-1 | 9,301 | Gallacher, Redford |
| 9 May 1987 | Motherwell | A | 0-1 | 2,340 | |
| 11 May 1987 | Hearts | A | 1-1 | 6,779 | Kirkwood |
Scottish Cup
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 January 1987 | R3 | Airdrieonians | H | 1–1 | 9,169 | Gallacher |
| 9 February 1987 | R3 | Airdrieonians | A | 2–1 | 5,000 | Ferguson, Gallacher |
| 12 February 1987 | R4 | Brechin City | A | 1–0 | 19,355 | Gallacher |
| 14 March 1987 | QF | Forfar Athletic | H | 2–2 | 7,985 | Malpas, Ferguson |
| 24 March 1987 | QF | Forfar Athletic | A | 2–0 | 8,139 | Holt, Ferguson |
| 11 April 1987 | SF | Dundee | N | 3–2 | 13,913 | Ferguson (2), Hegarty |
| 16 May 1987 | F | St Mirren | N | 0–1 | 51,782 |
Skol Cup
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 August 1986 | R2 | Queen of the South | A | 1–0 | 4,212 | Gallacher |
| 27 August 1986 | R3 | Ayr United | A | 3–0 | 3,680 | Ferguson (2), Gallacher |
| 3 September 1986 | QF | Hibernian | A | 2–0 | 9,212 | Ferguson (2) |
| 24 September 1986 | SF | Rangers | A | 1–2 | 45,249 | Ferguson |
UEFA Cup
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 September 1986 | R1 1 | FRA Lens | A | 0–1 | 11,330 | ||
| 1 October 1986 | R1 2 | FRA Lens | H | 2–0 | 11,645 | Milne, Coyne | |
| 22 October 1986 | R2 1 | ROM Universitatea Craiova | H | 3–0 | 10,728 | Redford (2), Clark | |
| 5 November 1986 | R2 2 | ROM Universitatea Craiova | A | 0–1 | 35,000 | ||
| 26 November 1986 | R3 1 | YUG Hajduk Split | H | 2–0 | 11,569 | McInally, Clark | |
| 10 December 1986 | R3 2 | YUG Hajduk Split [[File:TV-icon-2.svg | 18px]] | A | 0–0 | 26,000 | |
| 4 March 1987 | QF 1 | ESP Barcelona | H | 1–0 | 21,322 | Gallacher | |
| 18 March 1987 | QF 2 | ESP Barcelona | A | 2–1 | 42,000 | Clark, Ferguson | |
| 8 April 1987 | SF 1 | DEU Mönchengladbach | H | 0–0 | 15,789 | ||
| 22 April 1987 | SF 2 | DEU Mönchengladbach | A | 2–0 | 33,500 | Ferguson, Redford | |
| 6 May 1987 | F 1 | SWE Gothenburg | A | 0–1 | 50,053 | ||
| 20 May 1987 | F 2 | SWE Gothenburg | H | 1–1 | 20,911 | Clark |
Player details
During the 1986–87 season, United used 29 different players comprising four nationalities. Billy Thomson was the only player to feature in every match of United's UEFA Cup run. The table below shows the number of appearances and goals scored by each player. |}
Goalscorers
United had 15 players score with the team scoring 97 goals in total. The top goalscorer was Iain Ferguson, who finished the season with 28 goals.
| Name | League | Cups | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 12 | 28 | |
| 10 | 6 | 16 | |
| 8 | 3 | 11 | |
| 9 | 0 | 9 | |
| 3 | 4 | 7 | |
| 6 | 0 | 6 | |
| 4 | 1 | 5 | |
| ** | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 0 | 1 | 1 |
Discipline
During the 1986–87 season, one United players was sent off. Statistics for cautions are unavailable.
| Name | Dismissals |
|---|---|
| 1 |
Team statistics
League table
Transfers
In
The club signed five players during the season with a total public cost of at least £300,000 (some figures unknown). Two other players joined before the following season.
| Date | Player | From | Fee (£) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 August 1986 | SCO | Rangers | url=http://www.arabarchive.co.uk/player.php?id=202 | title=Iain Ferguson | publisher=The Arab Archive | accessdate=14 April 2015}} |
| September 1986 | ENG | AFC Bournemouth | Unknown | |||
| SCO | Dumbarton | Unknown | ||||
| 25 November 1986 | SCO | Elgin City | url=http://www.arabarchive.co.uk/player.php?id=108 | title=Player A to Z: Alan Main | publisher=The Arab Archive | accessdate=1 April 2015}} |
| January 1987 | SCO | Hibernian | url=http://www.arabarchive.co.uk/player.php?id=35 | title=Billy Kirkwood | publisher=The Arab Archive | accessdate=14 April 2015}} |
| 18 June 1987 | SCO | Keith | url=http://www.arabarchive.co.uk/player.php?id=397 | title=Hamish French | publisher=The Arab Archive | accessdate=14 April 2015}} |
| June 1987 | SCO | Crystal Palace | url=http://www.arabarchive.co.uk/player.php?id=573 | title=Alan Irvine | publisher=The Arab Archive | accessdate=14 April 2015}} |
*Dave Bowman and Jim McInally were signed in a joint £140,000 deal
Out
Four players were sold by the club during the season with a public total of nearly £1,000,000. One player retired due to injury.
| Date | Player | To | Fee | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 August 1986 | SCO | Tottenham Hotspur | url=http://www.arabarchive.co.uk/player.php?id=32 | title=Richard Gough | publisher=The Arab Archive | accessdate=14 April 2015}} | |||
| 13 December 1986 | SCO | Dundee | url=http://www.dirtyarab.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Player%20a-z/Coyne%20T.htm | title=Player A to Z: Tommy Coyne | publisher=Glenrothes Arabs | accessdate=8 February 2008 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20081015114417/http://www.dirtyarab.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Player%20a-z/Coyne%20T.htm | archivedate = 15 October 2008 | url-status=dead}} |
| January 1987 | SCO | Charlton Athletic | url=http://www.dirtyarab.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Player%20a-z/Milne%20R.htm | title=Player A to Z: Ralph Milne | publisher=Glenrothes Arabs | accessdate=8 February 2008 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20081015120834/http://www.dirtyarab.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Player%20a-z/Milne%20R.htm | archivedate = 15 October 2008 | url-status=dead}} |
| ENG | Blackburn Rovers | url=http://www.arabarchive.co.uk/player.php?id=200 | title=Chris Sulley | date=14 April 2015 | publisher=The Arab Archive}} | ||||
| SCO | Retired | N/A |
Loans out
| Date | Player | To | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENG | Blackburn Rovers | Unknown |
Playing kit
| {{Football kit | pattern_la = _blackline | pattern_b = _vneckblack | pattern_ra = _blackline | leftarm = EE7700 | body = EE7700 | rightarm = EE7700 | shorts = 000000 | socks = EE7700 | title = Home | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| colours | {{Football kit | pattern_la = _blackline | pattern_b = _vneckblack | pattern_ra = _blackline | leftarm = FFFFFF | body = FFFFFF | rightarm = FFFFFF | shorts = 000000 | socks = FFFFFF | title = Away |
| colours |
The shirts were sponsored by future chairman Eddie Thompson's VG Foodstores for a second season.
References
References
- "Match results 1986/1987". Arab Archive.
- (October 2010). "1986–87". Glenrothes Arabs.
- "1986–87". Glenrothes Arabs.
- "Iain Ferguson". The Arab Archive.
- "Player A to Z: Alan Main". The Arab Archive.
- "Billy Kirkwood". The Arab Archive.
- "Hamish French". The Arab Archive.
- "Alan Irvine". The Arab Archive.
- "Richard Gough". The Arab Archive.
- "Player A to Z: Tommy Coyne". Glenrothes Arabs.
- "Player A to Z: Ralph Milne". Glenrothes Arabs.
- (14 April 2015). "Chris Sulley". The Arab Archive.
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