Csaba Laszlo: '˜I'm at Dundee United for the long haul'

Dundee United manager Csaba Laszlo has rubbished talk that he has offered to resign and remains focused on reaching the play-offs. Picture: SNS.

Laszlo was rumoured to have offered his resignation to chairman Stephen Thompson in the wake of last Friday’s costly 2-1 defeat away to Livingston which left United a staggering 17 points adrift of Championship leaders St Mirren.

The 54-year-old Hungarian has endured a roller-coaster time in the hotseat since taking over from Ray McKinnon in November as the Tangerines fight to even nail a promotion play-off spot.

But former Hearts manager Laszlo has vowed to remain strong against a growing backdrop of civil war which engulfs the Tayside club, whose supporters wants Thompson to exit altogether.

He maintains talk of him throwing in the towel following their latest setback is way off the mark ahead of tonight’s clash with Queen of the South.

Laszlo said: “I don’t know where that has come from because it’s definitely not true. We have a lot of work to do but I won’t be running away. I am committed to the club so I don’t know where that came from. I want to be here for the long-term. I am committed for next season also.

“Every club needs stability. A lot of people talk about the change in the board but that is something that will happen in the future. You need plans for the future and I want to be involved in that. I will stay here for as long as I see it’s possible to move forward.

“This is a big club, you see  the fanbase, so everyone is thinking we have to be in the Premiership.

“The reality right now is we are in the Championship and we have to do well enough to get into the top two.

“Friday night’s defeat was painful but in football sometimes you have difficult times.

“It is a hard time at the moment because more is expected of us and we have to deliver on that now.”

United face Queens at Tannadice tonight with 13 games remaining of their faltering Championship campaign and Laszlo is refusing to  give up the fight of securing a Premiership return.

He added: “Everything is possible. The chance is still there to get promoted so we will not give up.

“You can talk about lifting the team and the players, but it also has to come from within.

“You know what, go out and win the game to lift yourself. There has to be pride, go out and do it – then see how you feel afterwards once you have won the match.

“You have to have it inside you. You have to think that you’re here, you’re fit and you are a player for Dundee United – so lets go and do it.

“Against Livingston I was waiting to score the second goal and win, not lose the match. But we made mistakes and were punished for it.

“If you want to move up to the next level you need to show more concentration, it’s not a question of what you are doing in training. It’s about the game – you have to concentrate and maintain that during the matches.

“We have enough experience to handle matches, we know we can win these games.”

l The financial woes being faced by United have been laid bare after the club sold off their Gussie Park training facility to provide a major injection of “working capital”.

The club completed the sale of the GA Arena to director and shareholder Mike Martin for a fee reportedly in the region of £1 million. The agreement includes an option for United to repurchase the land in the future at “no commercial gain” to Martin.

Lying fourth in the table in their second season out of the Premiership, the Dundee United Supporters Federation claims the sale of the GA Arena “only adds to the financial uncertainty at the club”.

A statement from the club, which last March posted a worrying loss of £1.55 million, indicated the transaction would “offset the financial challenges of a second successive campaign in Championship football” and allow United to focus on “the absolute priority” of promotion.