THE HONOUR of leading out a Motherwell side in the Champions League qualifiers has been bestowed on Keith Lasley.

In a crowded press room on Saturday, he performed the less welcome duties of trying to explain why Motherwell are bottom of the SPFL Premiership and, much more crucially, how the team can extricate itself from a predicament that looks calamitous even with a dozen league matches to play.

Lasley's Champions League adventure came in the summer of 2012 but in the dog days of 2015 it is apparent Motherwell are in another era and one that presents the threat of football in another division.

It was obvious in a dispiriting defeat against Dundee on Saturday that Motherwell are suffering from a lack of confidence, with manager Ian Baraclough spotting performance anxiety in a side that has not won this year.

Lasley, at 35, was not one to shrink from such a diagnosis. "There probably is a fear factor just now. When you are on the run we are at the moment, it's hard to be the one who gets on the ball and makes things happen," he said.

"But it's what we need to do, sooner rather than later."

The Motherwell side has been revamped under Baraclough but significant improvement is not apparent after seven players signed in the January window.

"It can work both ways when you have new faces," admitted Lasley. But he was optimistic: "The guys have helped us, they've settled well and there is competition for places now. Hopefully we can build now."

However, a nervousness in play complemented by an influx of players who have yet to impress normally leads in a downward direction and Motherwell have now bumped on the very bottom of the Premiership.

"Is this a defining moment? Of course. We were maybe guilty in the early part of the season of thinking, 'It will be okay . . . we'll get out of it'," said Lasley.

"We were all guilty of that but now we know we are in the mire, in the fight."

He dismissed any outside factors impinging on performances on the pitch. "There is certainly no unrest in the dressing room or anything," he said.

"We are all pulling in the same direction here."

Yet that direction is undoubtedly pointed towards the Championship and the performance against Dundee was hugely disappointing for the club's supporters who are seeking fan ownership within five years.

Paul Hartley's side were no more than businesslike with James McPake commanding in defence, Kevin Thomson gradually influential in midfield and Alex Harris now showing signs of the ability that marked him as brilliant talent in his early days at Hibernian, the club he has left on loan.

Paul McGinn's goal may have been fortunate as it was almost certainly a cross rather than a shot but Dundee deserved victory simply because they were the more progressive side. It leaves them to fight for a top six place.

Stephen McGinn, the Dundee midfielder, was mischievous about his brother's goal, saying: "You only need to see it once again to know that he fluked it."

But he was soberly serious when he talked about the quality of Hartley's side and the determination within it to push on towards the top of the league.

Motherwell have, instead, a battle for Premiership survival. This comes the supporters' attempts to take over the club have gained an impetus with the transition of the shares from John Boyle.

Three board committees have been formed to implement the business plan. There is excitement, even ambition off the field.

On it, there is anxiety, defeat and growing concern.

Lasley promises hard work and there is no temptation to doubt him. But it will take more than effort to remove Motherwell from the bottom. They need a cohesion at the back, creativity in midfield and ruthlessness in attack.

Motherwell of 2015 lack all three and reminiscences of Motherwell of 2012 only bring a pang of poignancy.

"That seems an eternity away," admitted Lasley. "That's football. You move on. It's not about what you have done five years ago, last week or yesterday."

It is now about what Motherwell do in the next two months.