Gary Holt believes Livingston need to rediscover their identity

Livingston manager Gary Holt admits his team are still struggling to strike the right balance between playing nice football and being hard to beat.

The Lions’ successful promotion to the Premiership in 2018 and their continued status as a top-flight club was built on a foundation of making sure they get in opposition teams’ faces.

However, following a run of three consecutive league losses ahead of Friday evening’s trip to Ross County, Holt believes he may need to put the breaks on his desire to introduce a more expansive style of football.

Holt, whose side are four points clear of the relegation zone, said: “That is what has got us success in the past.

“Yes, we want to evolve and we want to have the performances, but if results don’t go with performances then you have to look at something.

“When you analyse games and talk amongst ourselves, are we working hard enough, are we winning enough tackles and are we getting hurt in both boxes?

“I would probably say no is the answer so it’s something we have identified as a group that we need to do more of and get back to being ugly and hard to beat.

“You’re trying to evolve and play more football and the players we’ve got are good at doing it.

“The stats show we’re having more possession than the opposition and are creating more chances.

“It’s maybe not going back to basics, but going to what is our identity, what are we known for first and foremost.”