Neil McCann relishes Dundee drawing Celtic in Betfred Cup

Dundee's Paul McGowan celebrates the winning goal against Dundee United in the Betfred Cup last 16. Dundee will now meet Celtic in the quarter-finals. Picture: Ross Parker/SNS

Delighted with his team’s performance as they overcame derby rivals Dundee United 2-1 last night, he said his men had laid down a marker for the season and insisted they must now face Brendan Rodgers’ men with confidence.

“They’re the best team in the country and have deserved that but having it at Dens has given us a better chance,” said McCann, pictured. “Honestly if you want to win the cup you probably face them at some point and we’ve earned the right to look forward to a draw like that.”

Last season’s treble winners have gone 50 games undefeated domestically but McCann does not want that to cripple his players.

“I want the boys to believe they can go and challenge and be really competitive and have good cup runs. We’ll have to come up with a gameplan to give to the players for Celtic but I want them to grasp things, that you don’t want a mediocre season.”