Luke McCowan

He is not near Hatate, Calmac and Oriley and our ambition should always be to strengthen. We wont get much better than Matt obviously, but we should get better for the starting XI to put Hatate on the bench instead. McGowan is not the answer.

 

That’s what I’m saying mate we need upgrades to startint 11 but I was saying even people talking about him being a good squad player I’d rather play kelly and lawal etc

 

Yeah i agree with you

 

Bring him home..

 

He's a very late developer. Never played pro-youth as far as I'm aware and went straight to Ayr from his * team in Greenock. I think there probably is some improvement still in him.

 

lets remember brown was all but done until Rodgers worked with him there's always room for improvement

 

Decent player but surely we should be aiming higher

 

Its players like that who have kept at it and done it the hard way, which shows a lot of character.

 

Tony Docherty insists Dundee have received no summer bids for any of their star players – including Celtic-linked Luke McCowan

McCowan has been the subject of transfer speculation this close season, with a report crediting the Scottish champions with an interest in snapping him up.

But Dee boss ‘Doc’ revealed the Dark Blues have received no firm bids for McCowan, nor any other player.

It’s a situation that suits the Dens Park manager down to the ground.

However, he recognises speculation is an inevitable product of success, and he believes McCowan should be proud of it


There is speculation all the time,” said Docherty.

“I take it and Luke should take it as a huge pat on the back for the season he had.

““There are other players who have had very good seasons. The nature of the game is that when you are doing well you will attract suitors.”

He added: “We have not had any bids. Not that I am aware of.



When we came into the building [Luke] changed from a winger to a midfielder and things have happened for him.

“Things happen and develop but Luke McCowan is a Dundee player and I am loving working with him and hopefully that continues.”

McCowan returned to pre-season training with his Dundee team-mates this week.

The Dark Blues are getting stuck into some intensive physical work ahead of their summer trip to Poland next month.


And for Docherty, the presence of 26-year-old midfield talisman McCowan, who remains seemingly unaffected by all the Celtic talk, is a huge boost to his group.

“He is back in and is the life and soul,” said Docherty


He is my wee social guy, organising things. We have a social event on Friday, we are golfing after three hard days of pre-season.

“It is important we maintain that harmony and he is at the heart of that.

“You wouldn’t know anything different with Luke. He comes in, does his job and gets on with it.

“That is why he is such a brilliant personality and such an infectious personality in that dressing room


“He is going to attract attention, of course he is, but he is a Dundee player and that is the way things are.”

Discussions on a new contract were opened between the club and McCowan some months ago.

Those, says, Docherty, are ongoing.

“It is something we have discussed with him and we are in talks at the moment,” he said.

“We are still in discussions with regards that and we will see how it progresses.”

 

Get a good look at him today in the Dundee Derby

 

I was actually impressed whenever I saw him last year. Didn't realise he was as old as 26 though.

 

This will be who we sign to replace O'Riley

I'd actually take him as well, he is good, wee bit of class about him, energetic and gets stuck in. Might be the best player in the League outside us even including the huns.

Considering he probably wouldn't cost any more than £1million i'd definitely have him in our squad, would rather him coming off the bench to replace Hatate or O'Riley than Holm or Iwata.

Even if Hatate and O'Riley were injured him and Bernardo would still be decent I think.

I don't like a lot of players in the League or even any, Miovski I think is too mediocre, Shankland is slow as * and not near the fitness of a Celtic player, Lennon Miller I think has got miles to go before getting near a game - he's phsically well off it and he doesn't do enough in defence or attack or have any engine to be near the team but McCowan is actually a good well rounded player not much different to some guys we have, has a wee bit of like Palma/Haksabanovic and Hatate/O'Riley about him that he can run with the ball, energetic, decent technically, wee bit of a playmaker, combative, clever as well I think the way he moves the ball on with wee flicks and sharp passes, he's switched on to things around him.

 

I think Miovski is just mediocre, I think Oh would have done better than him if he played for Aberdeen and is quicker and more technical and probably would score as much. To me Miovski is like Daryl Murphy tbh I don't think he'd cut it here as he lacks a wee bit of class or pace or skill. Steven Fletcher for example I think was a lot better than him.

Miller as well, like watching him V Partick Thistle last week, he is a tidy player and he does curl a pass about well but he's got very little to his game for me although he's 17 he's not going to be Rodri but off the ball he looks useless and he barely moves and for someone quite languid and slow on and off the ball you'd expect him to be more a playmaker or attacking but he doesn't really get up the park or anything either. He has to develop massively to be near playing for us, if we played him instead of O'Riley we'd lose about 90% of what O'Riley does.

I actually thought a part of why Motherwell looked terrible was they seemed to carry him, he walked about midfield just passing the ball 20-30 yards but left everything else to everyone else.

He never passed and moved, he never made runs up the park, he let guys jog past him. Was like watching Charlie Adam actually.

McCowan actually does a lot on and off the ball and is a decent player with legs and energy and creativity etc

 

He’s a quality little player. Would be a great signing for Hearts, Hibs or Aberdeen but wouldn’t have him here. Hatate, O’Riley and McGregor are all levels above him.

 

I’d sign him, even as a squad option.

Has great desire and work rate, technically very good, more than good enough to play for us in this league.

I think he’d manage to force his way in to our team at some stage the way Barry Robson did and make it difficult to drop him.

You can’t have enough homegrown players who support the club. I could actually see him going and having a good career at a smaller Italian club like a Verona or Genoa, and having similar success to Ferguson.

At 26 he still has his best years ahead of him.

 

Thats what I think as well, he's actually impressive to watch here. Even off the ball his movement and you can see he has leadership and organisation about him as well he's always telling other players where to be, then he is sharp and intelligent on the ball as well as quite skilled.

Sometimes we get decent late developers up here like Robson and Hartley, for me he actually looks better as he has a bit of creativity about him and is quicker while also being quite solid.

For me he's far better than the midfielders at Hearts, Hibs and Aberdeen. I'd say he'd be too good for them, he could probably get a game for some of the better Championship teams going for promotion or as you say the bottom half of Serie A.

I'd sign him actually and be happy with him in our squad as he'd fit into our team although then we'd see how consistent he is under pressure or that, maybe wouldn't be good enough but he is quite impressive.

Having him and Bernardo as back-up to Hatate and O'Riley would seem ideal to me actually, he's kind of like Ryan Christie really.

 

Our starting trio in midfield are better than him then holm and bernardo are better than him. Then the likes of kwon and Iwata are possibly better than him and if not them I’m sure a years development for turley and he’d be better and almost 9 years younger. Would be a hard pass for me right now tbh as he’s not needed. I do think he’s a good player though but we have better starters and enough squad players for that position

 

Im not sure about Holm and Iwata being better than him.

Iwata has similar work rate and running but has he got the wee bit of class McCowan has, 1 touch passing, vision, dribbling, playmaking, not really.

Holm also for me is lightweight, he is similar skill to McCowan in the way he plays but probably also still less of a playmaker and defensively probably not as smart and not really got the engine either.

Like if McCowan is in our squad he is 100% playing before Holm or Iwata today if O'Riley and Hatate were out and if he was like him and Bernardo you'd be comfortable you are still going to get good quality from them and for the standard not to drop too much.

 

Holm has done nothing other than Cruyff turn someone and post it on Instagram calling him a *.

Couldn’t make our squads when we were at our worst last season.

He’s demonstrated nothing to suggest he’s a better player than McCowan.

He’s better than Iwata as well, who is a defensive midfielder that isn’t very good at defending, or much else.

Kwon is abysmal and will never make it here.