Instincts help take Levein to Dundee United
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Your support makes all the difference.The new Dundee United manager, Craig Levein, has said he decided to move to Tannadice on the basis of a positive meeting with the club's chairman, Eddie Thompson, on Sunday.
The former Heart of Midlothian, Leicester City and Raith manager signed a two-and-a-half-year deal less than 24 hours after Craig Brewster was sacked for leading the club to the bottom of the Scottish Premier League.
Levein's primary task is to drag the club away from the relegation zone and he has been promised funds in the January transfer window to enhance a squad that is worryingly thin in some areas.
His initial feelings on United and his first impressions of the club were what convinced him to decide to work at Tannadice instead of Dunfermline, who are also looking for a new manager.
Levein, who will be joined at United by his long-time assistant, Peter Houston, said: "I met the chairman on Sunday and just got a good feeling about the job. I am the kind of person who acts on these feelings and what I felt when I thought about this place was the same as I did when I went to Hearts in 2000.
"The chairman is an ambitious guy and there is some money available should I need it. The club ticks a lot of the boxes I looked at. There are some good players here, the youth set-up is excellent and there are quality youngsters around the place. The chairman is willing to back me in the transfer market if I need it. When you add up those factors it was very appealing and that's why I'm here."
He continued: "Peter and I have worked together for six years and I think we fit together seamlessly. He does the jobs I don't like to do and I do the jobs he doesn't do, and that's the basis of a good partnership. I spoke to Jim Leishman at Dunfermline but this came along in between and I felt this was the right thing for me."
Levein is confident of guiding United away from the relegation zone but is wise enough to know it is best to avoid making predictions after only one day in the job. Steady improvement was the stated aim of Brewster this season, with everyone at Tannadice aware this campaign would be one of the toughest in recent years, and Levein has echoed those sentiments.
He said: "I never make predictions or set targets because it's just stupid. What I will endeavour to do is make improvements. That's improvements as individuals and as a unit. I don't like talking in terms of what you are or are not going to do."
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