Jim Goodwin unfazed by interest in Dundee United wing-back Will Ferry

Jim Goodwin insisted he is unfazed by interest in Dundee United wing-back Will Ferry because such developments fit with the club’s strategy.

The 25-year-old has become a key man since moving to Tannadice from Cheltenham 18 months ago and – with a contract until the summer of 2027 – United would be looking for a seven-figure fee if they were to sell.

Vancouver Whitecaps are reportedly planning a move for Ferry after a failed bid to buy him last summer, while Real Salt Lake have been credited with an interest, along with clubs in the Netherlands and England.

“As a manager, of course, you never want to lose any of your good players,” Goodwin said on Wednesday. “Will Ferry has been a great signing for us.

“I brought him in from Cheltenham Town in the lower leagues of England, gave him the opportunity to play in the Scottish Premiership and raise his profile.

“Off the back of his consistent performances over the last 18 months, he’s obviously starting to gain the attention of one or two clubs, not just here in the UK, but all over Europe and obviously in the States as well, so I’m not surprised by that at all.

“It’s part of our strategy. It’s part of our business model. We’ve got the youngest squad in the Scottish Premiership. We want to bring in good young players, develop them and hopefully one day we’ll make good money on them.

“But of course, from a selfish point of view, from a manager’s point of view, I don’t want to lose my best players.”

After adding wing-back Neil Farrugia from Barnsley last week, Goodwin’s next priority is to bolster his goalkeeping department following Yevhenii Kucherenko’s move to Greek club Panetolikos earlier this month.

“I think in terms of the goalkeeping situation, that’s still something that we’re monitoring at the moment,” he said.

“We’ve only got two senior goalkeepers available to us, in Dave Richards and Ruairidh Adams. We need to try and add a third one to that group just to make sure that we cover ourselves in case of any injuries or suspension.”