Defiant Tony Watt insists the Dundee United players are firmly focused on winning and not taking revenge for the “Doon derby”.
The United fans are still hurting after that infamous night in 2016 at Dens as the Dark Blues won 2-1 to send their neighbours down into the Championship.
Now it’s Dee’s Premiership survival hanging by a thread and although a win for Tam Courts ’ men on Saturday would not relegate them, it would hammer another nail in the coffin – something that would delight the the home support at a packed Tannadice.
But former Celtic striker Watt is adamant that what happened in the past does not concern him and his only focus is on winning to clinch a top-six spot for the club.
He said: “Fair play to the fans whatever their agendas are but we just want to beat them because they are our rivals. We’re only focused on the positives and where we can end up.
“We will just let the rest take care of itself – we can’t worry about anybody else. That’s the way we have to do our jobs, being professional.
“If you wish negativity on other people, that’s letting negativity into your life which is hard because it can stay in your life.”
United know a draw would be enough to secure a top-six finish but Watt, 28, insisted he would accept nothing less than a victory.
He said: “Regardless of the situation, we need to win the game. It is a derby so there is none of this looking at the permutations.
“No, we want to win and that’s all we are focused on. If we don’t we will be really upset regardless if we get into the top six or not.”
“Our target has always been to win as many games as possible. I know we can’t win every one or we’d be winning the league which is a bit unrealistic but we need to try to win the ones in front of us and see where it takes us.
“We have not been at home for a few weeks so it will be good to get back out there and feel that wee buzz again.”
Watt was in the thick of the action the last time the sides met at Dens inFebruary when he was involved in a flare-up with the Dark Blues’ Charlie Adam and Ryan Sweeney.
Watt is expecting more of the same with so much at stake for both sides.
He said: “After the game I will be shaking their hands.
“I will talk to them but I will be calling them all sorts during the game and they will give it back.
“I’m not one to go down crying and giving up.
“They will probably dislike me during the game but there are no bad intentions. It is all geared towards winning games of football and that’s what we all need to be like.
“Look, I have no hatred towards anybody in life – I don’t have that in my body.
“But during the game, I will have a lot of passion towards winning.”
While Watt hasn’t hit the back of the net in the last six games, he insisted that isn’t a worry.
He said: “I couldn’t care about scoring goals at the moment.
“Even when I was at Motherwell it was the same. I helped them a lot last year without scoring many goals. But without being arrogant, I feel my overall play has been brilliant throughout.
“I want to be one of the best players every week.
“I was more off the cuff when I was younger – one game I could be a 2/10 and the next a 10/10 – there was no middle ground.
“Now, I have probably brought a consistency with my hard work.”
