With nearly a quarter of the Scottish Premier League already gone, anyone that tuned in hoping for a break from the norm will simply end up being rather disappointed. Seven rounds of matches have been played and the two Old Firm teams have gained three points in every game. Both Celtic and Rangers boast impeccable 100% records and it is only the superior goal difference of the Bhoys that allows them top spot in the SPL table.
Behind the familiar top two, there is an eight-point gap back to Motherwell and Dundee United who have been the most together and exciting sides of the chasing pack.
Despite a summer of massive change and overhaul under Neil Lennon that saw Celtic getting rid of fourteen players and signing twelve new players, it has been the Celtic Park club that have looked the most impressive of the two pace-setters. Blessed with an array of attacking options in Georgios Samaras, Shaun Maloney, Anthony Stokes, Gary Hooper and Daryl Murphy, the Hoops have rarely looked troubled in any of their seven league matches so far. They did come from goals down to Kilmarnock and Hamilton but were on top for so long in both games that it can hardly be argued that they got lucky.
Unlike their bitter rivals, Rangers have had to rely on injury-time winners to rescue them in games against Hamilton and Hearts. Walter Smith’s men, who also have a Champions League campaign to worry about, came back from two goals down against Aberdeen to win 3-2. The ten league goals of Kenny Miller already this season have been hugely welcomed by the Ibrox faithful as they keep level with Celtic without playing their best football.
Over in the Scottish capital, Hibernian have already got rid of their manager, John Hughes. Following an opening day win over Motherwell, Hughes failed to see his side win another game and a poor run of form at home that has seen the Hibees fail to win a league game at Easter Road since March. Despite the Edinburgh club finishing last season in fourth place in the league and qualifying for Europe, the poor start to the season wasn’t good enough for the Hibernian fans and Hughes left just as the international break started.
Across the city, the soap opera off the pitch continues to overshadow anything that Hearts do on it. Club captain Marius Žaliūkas has been banned from playing for the team by owner Vladimir Romanov because they are unable to agree a new deal for the player. Jim Jefferies’ side have been the real Jekyll and Hyde team of the chasing pack. At times they are able to sweep their opponents off the park and at others, they look average at best.
Motherwell and Dundee United, as mentioned before, are the best two teams in the Scottish Premier League outside of the big two right now. Former Scotland manager Craig Brown has settled in at Motherwell and, with a young squad around him, has got them playing free-flowing attacking football. Jamaican winger Chris Humphrey (who is being touted for a Scotland call-up) and Under-21 striker Jamie Murphy, have been stand-out performers.
In Dundee, Peter Houston has inherited a team that seen to be getting the job done and nothing more. Having lead the side to finish third last season, the two stars players in the Terrors squad, David Goodwillie and Craig Conway, would have expected bigger clubs to come knocking. As it is, those moves didn’t happen and they seem to going through the motions.
Of course, the chasing bunch are so close together that an unbeaten run in the next five weeks could see Motherwell and Dundee both ousted from their European positions. The title will unsurprisingly be won by one of the Old Firm but the Europa League spots are there to be claimed by the team that want it the most.
Tags: Celtic, Dundee United, Hearts, Hibernian, Motherwell, Rangers
[...] to happen at Hearts and the strong starts of Dundee and Motherwell; it can all be found here at twofootedtackle: Scottish Premier League: the season so far by following that [...]