St Johnstone vs Dundee United - prediction, team news, lineups

St Johnstone and Dundee United, separated by conscionable 1 spot successful the Scottish Premiership standings, volition travel unneurotic astatine McDiarmid Park connected Saturday. 

The hosts are 5th with 11 points from 5 matches, lone up of their sixth-placed visitors connected extremity difference.

Match preview

St Johnstone person enjoyed a fantastic commencement to their Scottish Premiership return, sitting 5th successful the standings with 11 points aft 8 matchdays. 

Simo Valakari's broadside person recorded 3 wins, 2 draws and suffered lone 3 defeats, with the Saints scoring 10 and conceding 10 goals successful the league successful that time.

Even successful their 3 defeats, St Johnstone person demonstrated their quality to vie astatine the apical level, lone narrowly losing to St Mirren (1-0), Hearts (2-1) and Celtic (1-0). 

The Saints person been astatine their champion erstwhile playing astatine home, winning two, drafting 1 and losing 1 of their 4 league matches astatine McDiarmid Park, and they volition beryllium anxious to support that grounds erstwhile they instrumentality connected Dundee United. 

St Johnstone are apt to trust connected Josh Fowler's goalscoring quality if they are to unafraid a result, with the striker impressively scoring 5 goals successful 8 appearances successful his first-ever Scottish Premiership season.

Dundee United volition beryllium different tricky trial for the hosts, though, with the Tangerines heading into Saturday's brushwood disconnected the backmost of an arsenic beardown commencement to the 2026-27 season. 

Jim Goodwin's broadside initially endured a dilatory start, failing to triumph immoderate of their opening 3 league fixtures - with 2 defeats and 1 gully - portion besides suffering elimination from the Scottish League Cup during that run. 

However, Dundee United yet tasted triumph for the archetypal clip connected matchday four, emphatically defeating Kilmarnock 4-0. 

Despite failing to instantly physique connected that triumph, losing 3-0 to Motherwell, the Tangerines person subsequently drawn 1 and won 2 of their past 3 outings.

Dundee United person improved crossed each areas of the transportation successful that time, from conceding 7 and scoring conscionable erstwhile successful their archetypal 3 league matches to scoring 9 and conceding 4 successful their past 5 games. 

Now looking to support their momentum and leapfrog their opponents, and perchance rivals Dundee depending connected their effect against Rangers, Dundee United volition beryllium searching for a 3rd consecutive triumph connected Saturday. 

The Tangerines person had the upper-hand successful caller renditions of this fixture, including winning each of the past 3 clashes by an aggregate people of 5-1. 

St Johnstone Scottish Premiership form:

St Johnstone signifier (all competitions):

Dundee United Scottish Premiership form:

Dundee United signifier (all competitions):

Team News

Zach Mitchell is the lone expected absentee for St Johnstone, with the defender recovering from a cruciate ligament injury. 

The Saints were boosted by the long-awaited instrumentality of Bozo Mikulic against Aberdeen, and they volition beryllium further strengthened by the instrumentality of Cheick Diabate, who is backmost disposable aft serving his suspension.

Fowler has scored 5 of St Johnstone's 10 league goals this season, and the striker should proceed up of Ruari Paton and Sam Stanton successful attack.

Dundee United, meanwhile, are without Mehdi Merghem owed to a limb injury, portion Emmanuel Agyei remains a uncertainty with a genu issue. 

After defeating Hibernian 1-0 successful their past outing, Goodwin whitethorn opt to sanction an unchanged starting 11 connected Saturday, including goalscorer Daniel Bennie alongside Idjessi Metsoko and Jesse Randall successful attack.

St Johnstone imaginable starting lineup:

Steward; Smith, Finlayson, Foulds; Todd, McAlear, Holt, Alic; Stanton, Paton; Fowler

Dundee United imaginable starting lineup:

Walton; Rawlins, Esselink, Forbes, Ciubotaru; Tait, Cameron, Iqbal; Randall, Metsoko, Bennie

We say: St Johnstone 1-1 Dundee United

St Johnstone person been astatine their champion astatine home, but Dundee United boast a fantastic caller grounds successful this fixture. 

As some teams are besides locked level connected 11 points aft 8 matches, we are predicting this lucifer volition beryllium a hard-fought clash betwixt 2 evenly-matched broadside that yet ends each square.

For information investigation of the astir apt results, scorelines and much for this lucifer delight click here.