Dundee United want to recruit Ian McCall after making Alex Smith the Scottish Premier League's first managerial casualty of the season yesterday and putting Paul Hegarty in temporary charge of the club.

The Tannadice Park side have made an official approach for McCall, who is at present the manager of Falkirk, though his club have rebuffed it. McCall has taken Falkirk to the top of the First Division after performing a similar feat against the odds at Airdrie before they went out of business.

The Dundee United chairman Eddie Thompson revealed that he wants a "bad loser" to turn the club's fortunes around.

Thompson insisted: "I am looking for a younger person who will bring some fight, vigour and excitement to Tannadice Park and some more fans on the terraces for us.

"The person I want would be a bad loser just like me and who would get the best out of the younger and older players.

"I want fresh enthusiasm in the place. I am going to do it off the park and I want someone to do it on.

"I have got a shortlist in my head and I have got to go through the proper channels. I will go to the individual clubs' chairmen and the people will be people employed in Scottish football. I hope it will be done in days rather weeks. We will consider everyone and make a decision in the course of the week."

Speculation had mounted after Smith's side plummeted to 11th place in the table following their defeat at Hibernian on Saturday. Despite only being in the Tannadice chair for less than two weeks, Thompson decided it was time to make changes.

"It's been a very tough weekend," Thompson added. "This morning was very unpleasant because we had to terminate the agreement with Alex and he's a gentleman. But we knew we had to do that."