McCall Keeping An Eye On McFadden

Photo by Jeff Holmes Motherwell manager Stuart McCall knows James McFadden can provide the piece of magic that could decide their Friday night fixture with St Johnstone - but he believes his own forward players are set to find form themselves. McCall released top-earner McFadden in the summer as he shaped his squad for this season with four strikers at his disposal at the time and Bob McHugh set to return from a loan spell at Queen of the South. The 31-year-old eventually ended up in Perth and is looking for his first goal for St Johnstone when Motherwell visit McDiarmid Park. McCall said: "I saw Faddy play last week at Partick Thistle. The game wasn't great and there wasn't a lot of goalmouth activity but he played the key pass of the game which put (Lee) Croft through, although the keeper saved it. He had another decent effort as well. "Listen, there is no denying the talent Faddy has got and still possesses. In tight games like this it might only take one second of magic and he is certainly capable of doing that. We are well aware he poses a threat if he plays, which I'm sure he will." Although the decision was enforced by money constraints, McCall was comfortable with the firepower at his disposal, with Henrik Ojamaa since replacing fellow Estonian Henri Anier as John Sutton's main foil. "First and foremost financially we didn't have the money to offer what he had been on," McCall said. "We had Craig Moore and Lee Erwin, two young players, and, at the time, Henri Anier and Sutty as well. We had four out-and-out strikers. So it was a bit of both really." However, Motherwell have struggled up front, netting just six goals in 12 domestic games, and they travel to McDiarmid Park in 11th place following a fourth consecutive defeat against Aberdeen last week. McCall said: "We've always been a team which has scored a lot of goals and created a lot of chances. We've not been doing that. "That's been down to individuals maybe lacking a bit of confidence. "We have chopped and changed formations but we just want to get back to what we have been doing over the last three-and-a-half seasons - getting at teams and making opportunities and defending better. "After the Dundee game I felt a bit lost and helpless but after last week's performance and attitude, and we had a chat after the game, I just sensed everyone is behind the cause. "Talk can be cheap but there's a desire in the club to turn this around." McCall's bid to push Motherwell up the table was not helped by a serious knee injury that midfielder Jack Leitch suffered in a midweek development league game. "Until the swelling subsides we don't know the extent but it will be minimum three or four months," McCall said. "It looks like it could possibly be a cruciate. That's a blow for us and the lad so we wish him a speedy recovery."