Man of The Match Tawanda Maswanhise Keeps Scoring but Motherwell Still Searching for Wins
Warriors forward Tawanda Maswanhise’s seventh goal of the season was not enough to secure victory for Motherwell, as the Steelmen were held to a 1-1 draw by Dundee at Dens Park.
The Zimbabwean forward produced a moment of class in the first half, gliding past defenders before slotting home to cap off Motherwell’s dominance. It was his second goal contribution in as many games, underlining the 22-year-old’s growing importance to Jens Berthel Askou’s side.
Motherwell, who enjoyed 68% possession before the interval, looked in complete control after Maswanhise’s opener. However, their failure to kill off the game proved costly when young Dundee defender Luke Graham rose unmarked at the back post to level the score early in the second half.
Askou was left frustrated, branding the lapse in concentration “unacceptable” given the time his team had to organise defensively.
“We probably played one of the best halves of my time here,” he said. “But then in the second half we fell asleep on a set piece. We had the game in our hands and didn’t take it.”
Maswanhise continued to trouble Dundee’s backline after the break, forcing goalkeeper Jon McCracken into a sharp save from close range, while teammate Apostolos Stamatelopoulos struck the post in a scrappy passage of play. But the Steelmen could not find a winner.
Dundee, lifted by the introduction of Cameron Congreve, had their own chances through Simon Murray and substitute Ethan Samuels before Yan Dhanda’s late red card left them clinging on with 10 men.
The draw extends Motherwell’s unwanted record to six straight Premiership stalemates — the first time this has happened in the 21st century — while Dundee are still searching for their first league win under Steven Pressley.
For Maswanhise, though, it was another encouraging display. The former Leicester City youngster not only added to his goal tally but was also named Player of the Match, his energy and direct running once again providing Motherwell’s main spark in attack.
Next up, Maswanhise and Motherwell turn their attention to a League Cup quarter-final trip to Aberdeen — a stage where his growing reputation will be tested once again.