Can Peter Houston take the big step to being his own man(ager) now that his senior partner, Craig Levein, has moved on?

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Dundee United will have a new man in charge for the Boxing Day game against Kilmarnock. Caretaker manager Peter Houston will have to do without the suspended midfielder Morgaro Gomis along with injured captain Lee Wilkie (knee) and striker Francisco Sandaza (groin). Senegal international Gomis should have missed last weekend's game against Hamilton but with that game being called off meant that his ban carried over till today. Houston believes he has a chance to build on the progress the club has made before Craig Levein left for the Scotland job. As a caretaker manager he is in a unique position as they are usually appointed in times of crisis. Houston worked closely with Levein at Hearts, Leicester and then United, has been promoted to be the man with the plan with his side sitting fourth in the league and having lost only two games this season. Houston has been given a minimum of four game in charge and is a candidate for the post on a full-time basis, but insists he is simply focused on maintaining the Tangerines' good form.

He said: "I'm delighted to be given the job on a caretaker basis. For the next few games, perhaps up until the Scottish Cup tie with Partick Thistle in early January, I'll be in charge of the team. I'm quite happy and relaxed about the situation. Usually, when a manager leaves the club and a caretaker is appointed, they're struggling near the bottom of the table. But this is an entirely different scenario. At the end of the day, we've only lost two games this season. We're on a roll - the players have been enjoying their football - so it's all about continuity. We've got a great bunch of lads here and it's obviously nice if some of them were saying nice things about me. We've got a great team spirit here so everyone is used to pulling together."

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