St Johnstone will travel to Dens Park on Wednesday to play Dundee as they look to continue the defence of their Scottish League Cup.

The Saints shall be aiming to retain the title this year, while the hosts are attempting to win the competition for the first time since the 1973-74 season.

Match preview

St Johnstone earned their first victory of the Scottish Premiership at the weekend when they defeated Aberdeen 1-0, which proved to be a huge result for the club.

Stevie May came from the bench to find the back of the net late in the game, securing all three points for his side and providing plenty of momentum heading into Wednesday's cup tie.

It was only the third goal that the Saints have scored in the league, which has proven to be a problem for them in the early moments of the campaign.

St Johnstone were able to win the Scottish League Cup for the first time in their history last season, defeating Livingston 1-0 in the final in order to get their hands on the trophy.

However, their journey to retain it started off on a rocky road when they played Arbroath in the second round, having to come from behind twice, including a 105th-minute goal from Jamie McCart to take the game to penalties.

The Saints played Dundee last year in this tournament and the Dark Blues handed them their only defeat in the group stage, by beating them on penalties after a goalless draw.

That is a result that James McPake would be happy to repeat this time around in order to earn a place in the final four of the competition.

After losing the Dundee derby at the weekend, the Dark Blues will be keen to quickly put things right, and progressing into the semi-final would be an ideal way to do that.

McPake's team currently sit bottom of the Scottish Premiership, having failed to register a single victory in the league, conceding 12 goals in the opening six fixtures.

However, the Scottish League Cup has proven to be a different situation for the team as they scored 14 goals during the group stage, keeping three clean sheets in the process.

The Dark Blues also did not concede during their second-round match against Motherwell when a Lee Ashcroft strike was enough to progress, and that is the type of form that could see them cause problems to the defending champions.

Team News

Charlie Adam was still unavailable on Saturday as he recovers from a groin injury, but Leigh Griffiths was able to lead the line once again, as he continues to search for his first goal for the club.

The Dark Blues were boosted by the return of Paul McMullan in the Dundee derby and he will be an option once again in the Scottish League Cup.

While St Johnstone will be without Cameron MacPherson due to his dislocated shoulder, they were able to welcome back Glenn Middleton to the starting lineup for the victory against Aberdeen, and he will likely keep his place in the team.

Murray Davidson was also able to return on Wednesday night, while they had positive news as Craig Bryson has also been back running on the grass as he nears his return.

After scoring the winner against Aberdeen, May might also be in contention to have earned a starting XI spot, while the decision to go with a back three proved to be a correct one, and Callum Davidson now has a decision to make in what formation he uses going forwards.

Dundee possible starting lineup:
Legzdins; Kerr, Ashcroft, Sweeney, Marshall; Anderson, Byrne, McGhee; McMullan, McGowan, Griffiths

St Johnstone possible starting lineup:
Clark; Brown, Ambrose, McCart; Booth, Rooney, Wotherspoon, Davidson; Middleton, O'Halloran, Kane

We say: Dundee 1-2 St Johnstone

This will be a closely fought contest between two teams that are not in the best of form when it comes to the league, but the Scottish League Cup will allow them to play with a little more confidence and freedom.

Even though Dundee have been impressive in this competition so far, the visitors will likely just edge this one due to the quality and experience they have.

Previews by email