PREMIER SPORTS CUP PREVIEW: Bairns are best bet for a shock … and Dens Park is THE place to be for goals
What a fantastic week it has been in the wonderful world of Scottish football. The resumption of the competition was a welcome boost after a summer of post-Euro discontent.
And yet, with things only just getting underway, we’re taking a break for a moment – as the Premier Sports Cup takes centre stage.
Holders Rangers welcome St Johnstone to Hampden just days after Dynamo Kiev ended any ambitions of Champions League football for another year. Early elimination from the cup is simply unthinkable.
Celtic take on Hibernian for the second time in a week as they look to continue where they left off after a 2-0 win at Easter Road.
Adam Idah scored twice against the Edinburgh club while on loan last season to secure a vital victory for the eventual champions of the competition. The Irishman could now play at Celtic Park after completing his permanent move earlier this week.
Falkirk have made an excellent start to the Championship and will be looking to beat Hearts
Hibernian will be looking for revenge after Celtic’s league win at Easter Road
Killie stars celebrate their heroics in Tromso… and Motherwell are next in their sights
There are six more matches to look forward to over the coming days, with teams from across the country attempting to secure a spot in the quarter-finals.
Saturday surprises in store?
After Hearts’ last defeat at Dens Park, a visit to Championship giants Falkirk was unlikely to be at the top of manager Steven Naismith’s list of favourite destinations this weekend.
A superb opening day performance against Rangers was enough to score a point for their home fans, but their woeful defeat to Dundee seven days later was enough to raise serious concerns among the Tynecastle fans.
Their mood will not improve much if their team makes another mistake on Saturday afternoon. Still, that seems a more than realistic expectation, given the start of the season for both teams.
John McGlynn’s men went unbeaten to win the League One title last year, and it looks like that good feeling won’t be fading any time soon, having started 100 percent in Division Two.
Falkirk boss John McGlynn, top left, and his Bairns will relish the visit of Hearts
Dundee have scored a lot of goals… and are playing an Airdrie team that scores just as many
St Mirren will be desperate to bounce back from their Euro exit as they head to Tannadice
If they can keep the underperforming Lawrence Shankland – and the visiting fans – quiet, then a place in the last eight looks likely.
Championship side Queen’s Park also have ambitions to conquer the top division, but face the difficult task of beating rising Aberdeen at Pittodrie.
New Dons manager Jimmy Thelin has made an excellent start since joining from Sweden last summer and is confident of winning seven out of seven games against Callum Davidson’s team.
Now that the sale of Bojan Miovski to Girona has been officially completed, it will be interesting to see how Thelin will fill the gap.
Replacing the North Macedonian will be a near impossible task, but as we have seen this season, Aberdeen are capable of sharing the goals, which could cause problems for today’s opponents.
League Two side The Spartans welcome Ross County to Ainslie Park and are confident they can put the Highlanders under serious pressure, having already beaten Livingston and Cove Rangers on their way to the last 16.
County are likely to make a number of changes to the team that drew with Dundee United in the closing stages last week, as the home side take full advantage and continue their surprising cup run.
Saints and Killie hope to avoid European hangover
Both St Mirren and Kilmarnock return to domestic competition on Sunday following their European exploits in midweek.
It was near despair for Stephen Robinson’s team in Bergen as two late goals put an end to their dream of participating in the Europa Conference League.
Their European efforts seemed to take their toll last weekend as they suffered a defeat at Aberdeen. After giving so much on Thursday night and not being rewarded, they will need to find a way to bounce back or face the same fate at Tannadice.
Kilmarnock, meanwhile, will be hoping their historic win against Tromso will be the catalyst they need to get their season off to a good start.
Derek McInnes’ side have conceded seven goals in their opening two Premiership games without reply and so far they look a world away from the team that finished fourth last year to secure a place on the European podium.
Thursday’s exhibition reminded us that once they get it right, they’re hard to crack.
They now turn their attention to the domestic challenges, aiming for a second away win in four days at Motherwell before turning their attention to next week’s stunning play-off clash in Copenhagen.
Dens Park is the place to be for goals
For neutral visitors just looking for some weekend entertainment, Dens Park might be the ideal place.
Games with Dundee and Airdrieonians this season have yielded a remarkable 54 goals in total, which considering September is still a few weeks away is pretty good.
With the likes of Simon Murray and Ben Wilson now having scored 11 goals between them, fans and neutral spectators can look forward to a classic in Tayside.