Caley Thistle manager Richie Foran has asked for a repeat performance from his players at St Johnstone on Saturday despite losing at Dundee last weekend.
The Caley Jags manager hailed his side’s display at Dens Park as their best performance of the season and was stunned at his side’s 2-1 defeat by the Dark Blues.
Foran lamented Inverness’ failure to convert their chances and their poor defending but insists he was delighted with his team’s showing.
The Inverness manager, whose side travels to St Johnstone on Saturday, said: “I’ll be telling the players same again please, but please tighten up defensively.
“Defensively as a squad it was not good enough. There are still too many gaps and the first goal Dundee scored showed that.
“We could have scored five or six, such was the number of chances we created but putting the ball into the back of the net is the hardest thing to do.
“I was disappointed with the result but not the performance and I know if we maintain the level we will win more games than we will lose.”
The defeat means Inverness have kept just one clean sheet this season and Foran has called for more from his side and believes the team’s poor defensive record falls on all the players and not his back line.
He said: “We must improve defensively. And, by that, I mean from our attackers all the way back to our defenders and goalkeeper.”
St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright watched the Dens Park game and will be looking to follow the Dark Blues’ example.
Wright said: “I saw Paul Hartley’s comments and he was probably right in terms of Inverness being better at getting into the last third.
“But Dundee defended well against them and we know that is an area we have to improve on.
“You can’t win games if you don’t defend well.
“Dundee were solid and were clinical in front of goal. That was the difference between the teams.
“Inverness still play good football but there is a strong physicality about them. We have got to be ready to match that. But the bottom line is that we have to look after ourselves. We have to make sure we are better. Do that and we can win all three points.”