A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| 1988–89 season | |
|---|---|
| Chairman | Jim McLean |
| Manager | Jim McLean |
| Scottish Premier Division | 4th W16 D12 L8 F44 A26 P44 |
| Tennent's Scottish Cup | Quarter-finals |
| Skol Cup | Semi-finals |
| Cup Winners' Cup | Second round |
| Top goalscorer | League: Mixu Paatelainen (10) All: Mixu Paatelainen (17) |
| Highest home attendance | 20,071 (vs Rangers, 27 September) |
| Lowest home attendance | 5,957 (vs St Mirren, 17 February) |
The 1988–89 season was the 80th year of football played by Dundee United, and covers the period from 1 July 1988 to 30 June 1989. United finished in fourth place, securing UEFA Cup football for the following season.
Match results
Dundee United played a total of 50 competitive matches during the 1988–89 season.[1] The team finished fourth in the Scottish Premier Division.
In the cup competitions, United lost in the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup to eventual runners-up Rangers and lost in the Skol Cup semi-finals to Aberdeen, who also finished as losers in the final. Romanian side Dinamo Bucharest knocked United out of the Cup Winners' Cup in the second round.
Legend
| Win | Draw | Loss |
All results are written with Dundee United's score first.
Premier Division
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 August 1988 | St Mirren | A | 1–0 | 5,832 | Clark |
| 20 August 1988 | Celtic | H | 1–0 | 18,769 | Gallacher |
| 27 August 1988 | Aberdeen | H | 2–2 | 13,128 | Clark, Meade |
| 3 September 1988 | Dundee | A | 3–0 | 14,927 | Paatelainen (2), Gallacher |
| 17 September 1988 | Hibernian | H | 1–1 | 11,017 | Paatelainen |
| 24 September 1988 | Motherwell | A | 2–1 | 3,559 | Redford (2) |
| 27 September 1988 | Rangers | H | 0–1 | 20,071 | |
| 1 October 1988 | Hearts | H | 0–0 | 10,838 | |
| 8 October 1988 | Hamilton | A | 4–0 | 3,538 | Meade, Paatelainen (2), McPhee |
| 12 October 1988 | Celtic | A | 0–1 | 36,870 | |
| 22 October 1988 | St Mirren | H | 0–1 | 7,618 | |
| 29 October 1988 | Motherwell | H | 1–1 | 6,266 | Paatelainen |
| 2 November 1988 | Hibernian | A | 1–1 | 10,000 | Meade |
| 5 November 1988 | Dundee | H | 2–0 | 14,882 | Meade, Paatelainen |
| 12 November 1988 | Aberdeen | A | 1–1 | 15,000 | Preston |
| 19 November 1988 | Hearts | A | 0–0 | 10,121 | |
| 26 November 1988 | Hamilton | H | 1–0 | 6,357 | Bowman |
| 3 December 1988 | Rangers | A | 1–0 | 39,200 | Beaumont |
| 10 December 1988 | Hibernian | H | 4–1 | 9,963 | Mitchell, French, Gallacher, McKinlay |
| 17 December 1988 | Celtic | H | 2–0 | 18,745 | Paatelainen, Baillie |
| 31 December 1988 | St Mirren | A | 1–0 | 7,762 | Gallacher |
| 3 January 1989 | Aberdeen | H | 1–1 | 17,952 | French |
| 7 January 1989 | Dundee | A | 1–0 | 16,332 | French |
| 14 January 1989 | Hamilton | A | 5–0 | 4,000 | McInally, Gallacher (3), Paatelainen |
| 21 January 1989 | Hearts | H | 0–0 | 13,674 | |
| 11 February 1989 | Rangers | H | 1–1 | 20,013 | Stevens |
| 11 March 1989 | St Mirren | H | 1–4 | 8,320 | Malpas |
| 14 March 1989 | Motherwell | A | 2–1 | 3,545 | Krivokapic, Gallacher |
| 25 March 1989 | Celtic | A | 0–1 | 36,870 | |
| 1 April 1989 | Aberdeen | A | 0–1 | 16,700 | |
| 8 April 1989 | Dundee | H | 2–1 | 11,910 | Sturrock, Gallacher |
| 22 April 1989 | Motherwell | H | 1–1 | 6,301 | Hegarty |
| 29 April 1989 | Hibernian | A | 2–1 | 7,700 | Irvine, Paatelainen |
| 2 May 1989 | Rangers | A | 0–2 | 39,058 | |
| 6 May 1989 | Hearts | A | 0–0 | 8,613 | |
| 13 May 1989 | Hamilton | H | 0–1 | 11,503 |
Scottish Cup
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 January 1989 | Dundee | A | 2–1 | 18,117 | Bowman, Meade |
| 18 February 1989 | Aberdeen | A | 1–1 | 23,600 | Paatelainen |
| 22 February 1989 | Aberdeen | H | 1–1 | 18,756 | Paatelainen |
| 27 February 1989 | Aberdeen | H | 1–0 | 21,095 | Paatelainen |
| 21 March 1989 | Rangers | A | 2–2 | 42,177 | Gallacher, Paatelainen |
| 27 March 1989 | Rangers | H | 0–1 | 21,872 |
Skol Cup
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 August 1988 | Partick Thistle | A | 2–0 | 4,500 | Paatelainen (2) |
| 24 August 1988 | St Mirren | A | 3–1 | 5,970 | Paatelainen, Gallacher, Meade |
| 31 August 1988 | Celtic | H | 2–0 | 21,178 | Gallacher, Redford |
| 20 September 1988 | Aberdeen | N | 0–2 | 18,481 |
Cup Winners' Cup
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 September 1988 |  Floriana |
A | 0–0 | 4,000 | |
| 5 October 1988 | Floriana |
H | 1–0 | 9,138 | Meade |
| 26 October 1988 |  Dinamo Bucharest |
H | 1–1 | 10,594 | Beaumont |
| 9 November 1988 | Dinamo Bucharest |
A | 0–1 | 18,000 |
Player details
During the 1988–89 season, United used 31 different players comprising four nationalities. Maurice Malpas was the only player to play in every match. The table below shows the number of appearances and goals scored by each player.[2]
