United 'close' to new signings - Goodwin
Dundee United are "quite close" to securing at least one new signing before Monday night's Scottish Cup derby at Dens Park, says manager Jim Goodwin.
The Irishman, who has yet to add to his squad in the January window, is targeting a forward but also looking to bolster midfield and defence.
"I think we're quite close with one definitely and possibly two. There's still a little bit of time before the game on Monday to try and get at least one of those over the line," Goodwin said.
"We're no different to any other team out there. We maybe don't have the resources and the funds available like some teams do to go out and pay fees for players. The recruitment up to now I think has been very good.
"We've been running with three senior strikers all season. Obviously Owen Stirton comes into that but still lacks that experience of playing regularly at Premiership level. I think we're still a little bit light at the top end of the pitch.
"We've had to go without [Louis] Moult for a considerable period of time which has left us only [Jort] van der Sande and [Sam] Dalby. We want to make sure we don't find ourselves in that situation going into the latter stages of the season. I also think midfield area and potentially a little bit of cover in the backline."
Goodwin admits United's impressive season so far - the Terrors sit third in the Premiership - makes the club "a much easier sell" to prospective signings, but says deals are still tricky to complete.
"It's not quite as easy or straightforward as people might think," he added. "We've identified good players who have other options. Sometimes the parent clubs are trying to get another deal done in order to free up that player.
"There's a lot of pieces that need to fall into place but I've got great support from the board. They backed me in the summer to bring in 13 new faces.
"They've backed me again this window to add a little bit more quality just to make sure that we keep that strength and depth in the squad and to try and maintain the position that we're in."