Ian Baraclough claims he knows exactly how Dundee United's Celtic-bound midfielder Gary Mackay-Steven must feel ahead of his Parkhead move.

But the Motherwell boss does not expect the continued speculation about his Tannadice future to reduce the winger's effectiveness when the Steelmen travel to Tayside today.

Mackay-Steven has penned a pre-contract agreement with the Hoops and will join up with Ronny Deila's squad in the summer.

The Parkhead boss would like to take the 24-year-old now but so far the Scottish champions are unwilling to meet the £250,000 fee United want to release him early.

That has left the Scotland international in a tricky position, with Jackie McNamara hoping he can help keep United in touch with the new Premiership leaders.

Baraclough had a similar experience during his days as a defender with Notts County when QPR came calling with an offer to move to Loftus Road in March, 1998.

The deal went through, but Baraclough admits it is not easy putting your body on the line for one club when you have pledged your future to another.

He said: "It's difficult for Gary Mackay-Steven now he has got his move to Celtic. He knows he is going there in May.

"I'm sure it has not bothered him one bit and he looks like he's enjoying his football.

"But there is a danger when you sign a pre-contract and you've got a foot in both camps that it may distract you.

"I'm sure the people at United will have been through this with the player.

"I was in this sort of position myself as a player. There was a lot of speculation about my going from Notts County to QPR.

"It does play on your mind and it does affect you a little bit. Experience gets you over that.

"I would like to think that I didn't go into challenges half-committed, but I also remember thinking 'there might be a deal for me tomorrow, I hope I don't get injured'.

"I'm not going to speak for how Jackie McNamara has dealt with it, but Gary seems to be playing okay. I fully expect him to play and him to be a threat."

Baraclough cannot afford for any of his players to be distracted as they continue to slide back towards the relegation zone.

The former Sligo Rovers boss steered his new side to back-to-back wins after taking over from Stuart McCall to move Motherwell six points clear of bottom two St Mirren and Ross County.

But since then, the 44-year-old has seen his side lose their next five matches and Well now sit just two points above second-bottom Saints, leaving Baraclough to admit his side were never truly out of danger.

"We were never fooled into thinking we were safe at all," said the Englishman, who still hopes to add to his squad before the end of the month. "Even just looking at the games coming up I knew we had a tough period of fixtures.

"We picked up points early doors, which was the best we could hope for, but since then we've had a couple of body blows.

"All we can do is work through these periods and hope, when we come out the other side, we are better for it."

United, meanwhile, have signed former Hearts defender Ryan McGowan. The Australia World Cup player - who can also play in midfield - has signed an 18-month deal after ending a spell in Chinese football with Shandong Luneng Taishan.