European qualification remains attainable for Ross County, however the Staggies will now need favours from elsewhere in order to achieve their goal.
County’s 1-0 defeat to Motherwell has swung the advantage in the Lanarkshire side’s favour, with Graham Alexander’s men now two points ahead of them.
The signs had looked good for the Dingwall men ahead of the game, given their strong home record in recent months.
Well, by contrast, went into the game having won just one of their previous 15 games in 2022.
Despite County creating numerous chances, a Kevin Van Veen penalty allowed Motherwell to become the first side other than champions elect Celtic to triumph at Victoria Park since October.
With only two games remaining, Malky Mackay’s men know they must realistically claim at least one further victory, and hope Well do not add to their tally.
With a midweek trip to Rangers followed by a final day match at home to Dundee United, that will not come easily for the Highlanders.
Should County fail to win at Ibrox and Motherwell defeat Hearts, the Fir Park outfit would be out of reach.
An opportunity could still present itself to catch fourth-placed United, who are three points ahead at present, however the Tannadice outfit have a better goal difference.
County could reclaim control of their fate by upsetting the odds in Glasgow this week, where the Staggies will face a Gers outfit buoyed by reaching the Europa League final last week.
Although the league is beyond his side, manager Giovanni Van Bronckhorst may have one eye on the final against Eintracht Frankfurt – as well as the Scottish Cup final against Hearts – when selecting his team to face the Highlanders.
County have shown impressive progress
Regardless of whether or not County achieve their goal of European football, come Saturday they will be reflecting on a remarkable campaign in which undoubtable progress has been made.
When Roy MacGregor laid out his ambition to progress further up the table, following two years of fending off relegation, a position in the upper reaches of the bottom half probably seemed like a realistic target.
County secured their Premiership status in a far more emphatic way however, by finishing in the top-six for only the third time in their history.
It followed a 10-match winless streak at the beginning of the season, at which point Staggies supporters would likely have settled for any form of top-flight survival.
That County could be left to rue potentially missing out on a first ever European qualification is a mark of how far they have come in a short space of time.
