Calum Macdonald
BBC Sport Scotland
Image source, SNSJordan McGhee says the past 15 months have been the toughest of his career as he has struggled with injuries.
The 30-year-old managed only eight appearances last season after joining Motherwell and made his first outing of this term in Sunday's 2-0 defeat to former club Hearts.
Speaking before Wednesday's Premiership game at St Johnstone, McGhee said: "It's really difficult. It's the hardest time in my career so far.
"Obviously, I've been involved in relegation battles and stuff, and then it's a different kind of pressure, but now I wasn't able to do anything."
The former Dundee man is pleased to be back involved after what he calls two "freak" injuries.
"I'm delighted, it's been a long 15 months. My full career I've not been too bad injury wise, and since being here, I've just picked up two unfortunate injuries, two freak ones.
"I just cleared the ball against Carlisle, the guy's kicked my leg basically into space and I've done my hamstring."
McGhee was a frustrated spectator during the Steelmen's European adventure this season.
"It's difficult, the boys are travelling to Freiburg, playing in these stadiums, and you're up in the gym working hard, trying to get yourself back. That's the motivation, of course, and I'm hoping that's it behind me now.
"I'm grateful. I've got really good family at home that I can lean on, and they help me out massively as well as my friends in the dressing room, everyone at the club has been outstanding.
"I just need to try and keep myself fitting there, which I'm sure I will, and contribute on the park and repay the faith they've shown in me."
St Johnstone won their last home league game against Motherwell 2-1 in January 2025, last winning back-to-back matches against the Steelmen in February 2016 (six in a row).
St Johnstone have only won one of their past eight midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) games in the Scottish Premiership (D3 L4), beating Ross County 1-0 in February 2025.
Motherwell have lost their past three away league games, last losing more in succession in December 2017 (5).
Motherwell have won three of their past four Scottish Premiership games against St Johnstone (L1), as many as their previous 15 beforehand (W3 D6 L6).
Motherwell have lost their past two league games against newly-promoted opponents, last losing more in a row in February 2015 (5).
Image source, SNSSt Johnstone missed Sam Stanton (ankle) on Saturday but manager Simo Valakari says he has no new injuries.
Motherwell hope to have Lukas Fadinger and Regan Charles-Cook back while Martin Moorman has been struggling with illness but should be fine.
Oscar Priestman (calf) is still not ready, Dylan Williams (hamstring) remains out while Alex Lowry (knee) and Johnny Koutroumbis (muscle) are out until the international break along with long-term absentees Paul McGinn and Callum Hendry (both knee).
Calum Macdonald
BBC Sport Scotland
Image source, SNSAlfred Johansson has been speaking to the media as Motherwell prepare to visit St Johnstone on Wednesday night (19:45 GMT).
Here are the key points:
Amid a six-game losing run, Johansson is "100% confident" his side's form will turn around.
He says: "If we were training really bad, if we were performing really, really bad in the games, then I would be worried, but that's not the case. For us it's a question of time before we turn this round, that's the belief I have and we have."
He stressed it is now about "improving the details" and says the past five weeks have been a "sort of pre-season" as the European campaign meant little work was possible and he just had to "throw players out there and play football".
The Swede adds: "Now we've been able to work, now we see an improvement in our performances, now we just have to keep going with that. We have to be a little more mature, aggressive, cynical, call it what you will."
Outside noise doesn't bother Johansson, who insists it is a constant in football and he wants Motherwell to be a "closed circle and a locked-in family".
He doesn't expect there will be much between the teams at McDiarmid Park on Wednesday night, pointing out the sides have "similar output numbers in terms of goals scored and conceded".
Johansson says St Johnstone are a hard-working, humble team who deserve respect.
He is hopeful Lucas Fadinger will be fit to play, likewise Regan Charles-Cook. Callum Hendry and Paul McGinn are not ready and Oscar Priestman will have to wait a little longer. Alex Lowry has picked up a small knee injury and likely won't play before the international break.
Jenna Thomson
Fan writer
Six in a row was not the type of horror I was expecting to experience in the run-up to Halloween.
What is more frustrating is we played well in Sunday's home loss to Hearts, we just weren't clinical enough.
Tensions are building among fans and understandably so. I have defended the manager and the team because this issue is not black and white, but the frustration isn't an overreaction either.
Six defeats in a row - the majority against opposition we are capable of beating - is not good enough.
That being said, Jens Berthel Askou didn't have the best win record at this point last year. The difference is he was getting draws galore, while Alfred Johansson currently can't pick up any points.
It seems that as a club we exist in a cycle. New manager appointed - he is a genius, we are winning a trophy this year. Then we lose a cup game to lower-league opposition, drop points three games in a row, the manager doesn't have a clue and everyone blames Stephen O'Donnell.
Then we pick up points - the manager is back to being the best thing since sliced bread. We go on a worse run - the manager is sacked or leaves.
Right now, we are at the blame O'Donnell section of the cycle. He has admittedly given away some goals recently, however, I can't think of any players who have had two good games in a row.
The quest for much-needed points continues with a Saints double-header as we travel to Perth on Wednesday then host St Mirren on Saturday. These have turned into must-win games for us.
I am hoping our Halloween is filled with treats rather than tricks, but I won't hold my breath.
We asked for your views after Motherwell's losing run extended to six games with Sunday's 2-0 defeat at home to Hearts.
Here's what you had to say:
Adam: Same performance, different week. We go through a good spell during the game where we create chances but just don't have the clinical instinct in the final third. Defensive errors have cost us again, with slack passes and not closing down players quickly enough. Good teams capitalise on that. I have never seen a downfall like Tawanda Maswanhise's before. Ever since the Afcon tournament, he's been a different player, with what looks like no fight or desire. The manager has the St Johnstone and St Mirren games to save his job.
George: We've just not coped with losing our midfield-to-front pressing players from last season, and their replacements - Jardell Kanga and Alex Lowry aside - have been poor. At the back, Stephen O'Donnell is now consistently gifting goals whenever he's on the pitch and should be moving into coaching, as he can't cope. Eythor Bjorgolfsson should be dropped from the squad completely.
Matthew: Felt we deserved something from the game. Another defensive error from O'Donnell kills the game. Once the errors at the back stop and we finish our chances, everything will click.
Taylor: Alfred Johansson? Three words. GET HIM GONE! In-game management is non-existent. Sometimes you need to hold your hands up and say something hasn't worked. Get it sorted before it's too late. Maswanhise has been a man down since January and is offering nothing. His head is clearly not at Motherwell, and he's still starting ahead of players who are willing to fight on the pitch. O'Donnell comes on for two minutes and gifts Hearts a goal. That's three gifts from him in the past three games. He should have been nowhere near that team. On a positive note, it's the best I've seen Joe Hodge play in a Motherwell shirt, battling for everything, and Kanga was a breath of fresh air when he came on. Why he's not starting, I do not know.
Colin: Worrying times ahead. The second-half performance was the best we've played in a while, but we are toothless up front. Yet again, another bit of shocking defending leads to Hearts' second goal. It's going to be a long slog at the bottom of the league for us unless something changes soon.
Mark: The writing is on the wall for the gaffer. He insists on selecting underperforming players and always has the same excuses after matches. Wednesday is a must-win, or it's Johansson out.
Watch Hearts secure rare away win at struggling Motherwell
Watch Hearts secure a rare away win at struggling Motherwell. (UK only)
Calvin Miller's late goal sealed a hard-fought win for Hearts over Motherwell and secured their first win outside of Edinburgh in the Scottish Premiership since January.
Read the full match report here
Have your say on the game via this link
Image source, SNSMotherwell manager Alfred Johansson tells BBC Scotland: "It certainly is not [a 2-0 game] based on the amount of chances the teams created.
"We did good things but it's in the boxes, it's in their box and our box that games get decided. We did enough get into positions where we have a chance to score goals but we don't which is very frustrating for all of us.
"In our box, it's too easy and it's not enough if you want to win games in this league. It's very frustrating to close a game like this again.
"We need to improve. It's me, it's the players, it's what we do on the training ground.
"One game changes a lot, one goal can change a lot so we have to keep on going.
"We have the chance again on Wednesday to take this step that everyone deserves.
"We do many things well but it's not enough because in the end it's about scoring goals and not conceding goals. We need to step up in that moment and we need to show it on Wednesday."
Image source, SNSMotherwell are set to have Oscar Priestman and Regan Charles-Cook back in contention. Callum Hendry and Paul McGinn are out but continue to progress towards a return.
Hearts are expected to be without Harry Milne (knee), Christian Borchgrevink (hamstring), Oisin McEntee (muscle), Stuart Findlay (groin), Ageu (muscle), Craig Halkett (Achilles), Blair Spittal (shin) and Tom Renaud (ankle).
But Amadou Ba-Sy could be involved after not being part of the European squad.
Image source, SNSMotherwell manager Alfred Johansson believes fine margins have cost his side during a five-game losing run.
After a bright start to the season, the Steelmen have faltered, with last weekend's 3-2 defeat at Kilmarnock continuing a slide down the Scottish Premiership table.
"It is not too simplistic [for one result to turn the season] because sometimes it's like that, football is a game of margins," Johansson said.
"When we played Falkirk at home, if we had a little bit more of the margins to our side than we would have won 1-0.
"If we had the margins a little bit more against us away to Hibs, then maybe we draw instead of win that game.
"And similarly in Killie, if we execute better in some moments, offensive and defensive, then we win that game.
"So it is not too simplistic because these things they tend then to create emotions in players, and belief and energy.
"I am super impressed with the energy of the boys in the training ground at the moment, but still, you want to get paid [with results]."
Motherwell are next in action on Sunday against Hearts, who have lost their past two outings against Celtic and Trabzonspor and are suffering an injury crisis.
"They are aggressive and are high pressing man-to-man," Johansson said of Wouter Vrancken's side. "They are strong in the combinations to go forward.
"You can see they have got a coach from abroad that focuses in some of these things. I think they have been doing really well.
"They have been quite solid defensively in the league, apart from the Celtic game, so I think we will come up against a good team that will try to be themselves at Fir Park."
Cal Gilkison
BBC Sport Scotland
Image source, SNSAlfred Johansson has been speaking to the media before Motherwell host Hearts in the Premiership on Sunday (14:00 GMT).
Here are the key points:
Johansson will "stick to my principles" following a run of five successive defeats. He says: "There are some big positives we need to continue with and reinforce and then there are some issues we need to fix."
The Swede is drawing on experiences from his spell at Rosenborg to help him get through this difficult period: "We were just above the relegation zone and newspapers all over were like, 'Rosenberg is going to go down, this is the biggest crisis ever' - and we ended fourth that season. All of a sudden things that we had been working on clicked. We just stuck to what we had been working on and got the hang of it with a young squad. I don't believe in changing things completely."
Johansson credited Motherwell's players for staying "professional" throughout the tough run of form, adding: "You see it every day in training. They have a fantastic attitude and fantastic effort. Everyone is just committed and works really hard. They make my job easy."
The return of Oscar Priestman and Regan Charles-Cook this weekend is a "big positive" for the Steelmen. Callum Hendry and Paul McGinn are "progressing well" but aren't quite ready for their return.
On Hearts, the Motherwell boss says: "I expect to come up against a good team that are aggressive in their high pressing. You can see they've got a coach from abroad that focuses on these things. I think they've been doing really well. They've been quite solid defensively in the league apart from the Celtic game. I think we'll come up against a good team that will try and be themselves at Fir Park."
Image source, SNSMotherwell have spent a league-low 16.7% of their Scottish Premiership games this season winning, while only Celtic have spent a higher proportion of their matches in the lead (64.8%) than Hearts (45.4%)
Each of Motherwell's past three home league games against Hearts have been drawn, with two of those finishing goalless.
Hearts are unbeaten in seven league meetings with Motherwell (W3 D4) since a 3-1 defeat in August 2024.
Motherwell have lost five successive league games, last losing more in a row in April 2003 (6).
Hearts have won just two of their past 12 away league games (D3 L7), losing 7-1 at Celtic last time out. Home and away, Hearts had shipped just six goals in their previous seven league matches before that defeat.
Former Dundee and Dunfermline Athletic boss James McPake urges under-pressure managers Alfred Johansson and Craig McLeish of Motherwell and St Mirren to "stick to your principles". (Sun, external)
Jenna Thomson
Fan writer
Well, it certainly wasn't the best trip to Ayrshire, was it?
Conceding a goal after two minutes sums up the issues we've been having lately. Our defence is nowhere near as capable or strong compared to last season and it desperately has to change.
If the highs of last term had never happened no one would be as panicked about the current five-game losing run.
At least there is positivity off the pitch - Saturday is the Well Society's celebration event to mark 10 years of fan ownership.
The Well Society is the crown jewel of Motherwell as both a business and a football club.
I know in a cost-of-living crisis money is tight, but you can contribute as little as £5 per month. That will still be £60 a year the club didn't have in their reserves before you contributed.
In a time of uncertainty and poor results I hope fans can come together and rejoice in the knowledge the club are in good hands behind the scenes.
Sportscene analysis: Johansson must 'try something different'
Sportscene pundit Richard Foster says it is too early to be overly concerned about Motherwell, but believes Alfred Johansson must "try something different" to halt a five-game losing run.
Watch Sportscene highlights of the weekend's top-flight action
Watch highlights of Kilmarnock v Motherwell in Scottish Premiership
Watch all the highlights as Kilmarnock moved off the bottom of the Scottish Premiership, and confined Motherwell to a fifth successive defeat with a victory at Rugby Park. Available to UK users only.
Motherwell fans, we asked for your views on Saturday's defeat to Kilmarnock.
Here's what some of you said:
David: I really fear for us this season. After a promising start, we've fallen away badly. It's all been downhill since the Stenhousemuir cup match. Alfred Johansson seems like a really good guy but I don't think he has the tactical nous that Jens Berthel Askou had.
Stuart: A complete lack of defensive awareness, organisation, and accountability. It's the same issues for weeks now and a real concern it's not being addressed.
John: Another non-Motherwell performance. Too many players making mistakes with the manager failing to get his selection and tactics right. Is his jacket on a shoogly peg? Time will tell.
Andrew: I'm afraid time is running out for the manager. I think he's out of his depth.
Sinky: Things are going from bad to worse. We are heading towards the cliff face and I fear that if we are defeated in our next three games it may be time to start looking for a new manager. It was always unlikely to reach last season's heights but this season couldn't be more polar opposite.
George: It is hard to understand what our plan or structure is nowadays. Where is any prolonged cohesiveness? We have become a team of bits and pieces with a majority of the team looking lost. It would be a terrible irony if the team who lit up the league last term were reduced to a damp squib.
