MX23RW : Wednesday, December 18 11:26:14| >> :120:32588:32588:

What we learned from this weekend's Scottish Premiership action as Old Firm battle continues

What we learned from this weekend's Scottish Premiership action as Old Firm battle continues
© Reuters
Just one goal separates Celtic and Rangers at the top of the table.

Celtic remain top of the Ladbrokes Premiership after a comfortable 2-0 win over Motherwell at Parkhead.

The Hoops have scored one goal more than Rangers, who won by the same scoreline at Livingston, as the battle at the top between the Old Firm intensifies.

Here, the PA news agency looks at five things we learned over the weekend.

Celtic end a great week still on top

The Parkhead club won on Italian soil for the first time with a 2-1 Europa League victory over Lazio in Rome on Thursday night.

Returning to domestic duties French striker Odsonne Edouard opened the scoring in the 19th minute with a cool finish.

Well defender Richard Tait put through his own goal in the 54th minute to leave the home side ahead of their Old Firm rivals by the narrowest of margins.

Rangers handled the challenge of Livingston

Livingston v Rangers – Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership – Tony Macaroni Arena
Rangers midfielder Joe Aribo celebrates scoring his side's first goal of the game at Livingston with Borna Barisic (right)

Steven Gerrard's men – and defender Filip Helander in particular – struggled at the Tony Macaroni Arena in September before sealing a narrow Betfred Cup win.

But the Swede enjoyed a far more comfortable afternoon in West Lothian as Rangers secured a 2-0 victory.

The opener came from Joe Aribo, who suffered 20 stitches in a head wound the last time he was at Livingston.

Christian Doidge can find the net

Paul Heckingbottom might have felt even more sick when he saw the goalscorers after Hibernian romped
to a 4-1 victory at St Johnstone days after he was sacked as head coach.

Heckingbottom had been under pressure after his summer signings failed to hit the ground running, especially Doidge, his most expensive acquisition, who did not score in his first nine league games.

The striker's hat-trick in Perth came too late to save the man who signed him.

Hearts are back to winning ways at Tynecastle

It was a similar story across Edinburgh as Hearts sealed their first home win since March as they beat St Mirren 5-2 in their first league game since Craig Levein was sacked.

Levein had Hearts flying high at the top of the table until Steven Naismith picked up a knee injury in October last year and the Scotland forward's return after a series of fitness problems came just too late for Levein after he netted the opener at Tynecastle.

Aberdeen hit form

Aberdeen came from behind at the Global Energy Stadium to beat Ross County 3-1 and secure three consecutive Ladbrokes Premiership wins for the first time this season.

The Staggies struck first when Josh Mullin sent goalkeeper Joe Lewis the wrong way with a penalty.

However, Derek McInnes's side hit back with Niall McGinn levelling five minutes later before Ryan Hedges and Andrew Considine struck in the second half for three welcome points and confirmation of an upturn in fortunes.

ID:378584: cacheID:378584:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:7864:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Celtic's Jonny Hayes celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates on September 1, 2019
Read Next:
Neil Lennon hails Jonny Hayes's "real reliability and quality"
>
Read more about Celtic Rangers Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Celtic1514104444043
2Aberdeen16104230181234
3RangersRangers1510232791832
4Motherwell168172226-425
5Dundee UnitedDundee Utd166642519624
6St Mirren176382228-621
7Dundee165472729-219
8Kilmarnock174581834-1617
9Hibernian173682129-815
10Ross County173681333-2015
11St Johnstone1742112032-1214
12Hearts1734101826-813


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!