Mark McGhee’s powers of persuasion ensured that Chris Porter ended up at Fir Park and not Tannadice last July. If the Motherwell striker repays his manager on the pitch today, then Craig Levein will spend a long frustrating summer, ruing not one, but two, missed opportunities.

The Dundee United manager knows that defeat today at Fir Park will almost certainly end his team’s chance of playing in Europe next season. Motherwell could move four points clear, with two games in hand, if they win. The third-placed side in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League know that United and Hibernian are in pursuit of Uefa Cup qualification as well, but McGhee has instilled a sense of belief in Motherwell.

The Lanarkshire club, which was staring relegation in the face 12 months ago, has been revitalised since McGhee succeeded Maurice Malpas in June 2007. Levein is full of admiration for McGhee’s qualities, but even he admits to surprise at his managerial rival’s transformation at Fir Park, helped by Porter, a player he had courted before McGhee had even entered the picture at Motherwell.

Porter’s 21 goals at Oldham Athletic in Coca-Cola League One alerted Levein and he thought the robust striker would play a key role at Tannadice. Then the deal collapsed, just before the end of June, with Levein stating that he only wanted players at Dundee United who “are desperate to come to this club and are eager to be part of what we are trying to do. I just did not get that feeling from Chris.”

Just seven days later, Porter signed for Motherwell. His 13 goals so far have underlined the promise of a man for whom Oldham turned down a £750,000 offer last season from Plymouth Argyle, only for the Lancashire club to be stunned when Porter refused to sign a new deal and walked out to Scotland using the cross-border loophole created by Andy Webster. In essence, Porter is the type of striker that McGhee was in his own more illustrious career, that wandered from Aberdeen to Hamburg and then Celtic to Newcastle United.

“Given the way Motherwell ended last season I didn’t really expect them to be where they are this time round,” Levein said. “However, once Mark got the job my opinion changed because he’s a quality manager so I knew he’d do well for them. Signing Chris Porter, who we were after, and Stephen Hughes were big moments for him because they are two quality players. Those two really make them tick.”

McGhee’s team are not struck down with stage-fright about the prospect of Motherwell playing in Europe for the first time in 13 years. “They are loving it,” McGhee said. “There is no danger of any fear or nerves coming in. We can’t wait for the games. Last weekend, not having any game was a nightmare. We were twiddling our thumbs. Luckily enough we got a good result with a draw between Dundee United and Hibernian. We are up for it.”

The Motherwell manager kept his men fresh by giving them extra days off following the 4-1 home defeat a fortnight ago. “You can’t keep coaching because they no longer take things in for the whole season,” he said. “But they have a mental strength to go out in these last six games and capitalise on the work they have already done and finish the job.”

Today’s meeting will be poignant for both sets of players. The last time they faced each other at Fir Park was on December 30 when Phil O’Donnell, the Motherwell captain, died of a heart attack, as his team won 5-3.