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Scottish Premiership returns: Rangers flying, Celtic wobbling and a new boss at Hibs

Errol MayfieldPublished 37m ago3 min readBased on 10 sources
Scottish Premiership returns: Rangers flying, Celtic wobbling and a new boss at Hibs
Image by SeppH from Pixabay

Scotland's top flight is back. All 12 Premiership clubs are in action this weekend after the extended international break.

Rangers carry the form. Derek McInnes's side won six straight matches before the pause, according to BBC Sport. They host Kilmarnock at Ibrox on Saturday.

Ibrox has been a fortress. No visiting league team had scored there since early August. Kilmarnock will not be overawed.

Neil McCann's side went into the break with an away win at Hibernian and draws with Aberdeen and Hearts. They sit bottom, but they have been hard to beat.

The most watched dugout is at Tannadice. Marink Reedijk takes charge of Hibernian for the first time on Saturday against Dundee United.

Reedijk is 35. The Dutchman only joined late last month and has not had a transfer window to shape the squad. He has promised "brave, intense and committed" football. Hibs need it fast. They are third bottom, one point above Falkirk and two above Kilmarnock.

Hearts want a reset. They lost to Falkirk and drew away to Kilmarnock before the break. They host St Mirren at Tynecastle on Saturday.

St Mirren arrive on three straight defeats. Both St Mirren and Dundee sit three points behind Hearts. Dundee have the louder momentum after beating Motherwell, and they travel to Falkirk on Saturday.

Then comes Sunday. Leaders Celtic go to Motherwell at Fir Park, still two points clear at the top despite losing their past three games in all competitions.

That run includes league and cup defeats to Rangers. Motherwell have their own problems. They lost three in a row to Rangers, Aberdeen and Dundee before the break.

The weekend closes at Pittodrie. Aberdeen face St Johnstone with both sides on eight points after seven games. Aberdeen were unbeaten in four going into the pause.

What makes this stand out is the timing. Nobody has played for weeks, form counts for less, and a fast start can lift a whole stand. For fans, this means every ground gets a fresh noise on Saturday afternoon.

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