Another win for Rangers has eased some more pressure ahead of a big week, while Celtic further strengthened their grip on another Scottish Premiership title as Hibs dropped back to the bottom.
Pressure eases further on Clement
When the performances and results were not coming Philippe Clement always insisted the Rangers fans would see the best from his team in October or November.
The manager was a few weeks out but there has been a vast improvement, with Sunday’s win at Ross County moving them two points behind Aberdeen in second with a game in hand.
Captain James Tavernier is back on the goal trail with two in two, while Hamza Igamane has been a real bright spark for the Gers in recent games and added another goal in Dingwall.
While they still trail Celtic by 11 points in the title race, their first win over their Old Firm rivals on Sunday would see them retain the League Cup and give a further boost to the confidence amid a hectic spell for Scottish clubs.
Seemingly unstoppable Celtic win again
Even when Celtic are below their best it seems no club can halt their title chargeespecially when they have Kasper Schmeichel in goal.
He was player of the match as he kept Hibs at bay while Jamie Smith could not do the same at the other end, although there was little he could do about Joe Newell’s own goal.
Brendan Rodgers’ squad rotation paid dividends again with Arne Engels and Luke McCowan starting in midfield, while Cameron Carter-Vickers and Kyogo Furuhashi started on the bench to rest ahead of a big week for the Hoops.
While the manager admitted they need to up their defensive standards for Dinamo Zagreb, their intense attacking play was again on display with Kyogo coming on to score the best of their goals.
Shankland ends goal drought to lift Hearts from bottom
It has been a struggle for Lawrence Shankland after last season’s blistering form but, after a 70-day drought, he scored a double for Hearts to hand them victory against Dundee.
It was a result that also lifted the Jambos off the bottom of the Premiership, with Hibs moving back into that spot following their defeat at Celtic.
You could sense the pressure was getting to the Hearts captain as his late penalty miss in the Conference League showed, if Saturday’s showing is a sign of things to come then they should be fine this season.
They are 11th but only five points below St Mirren in seventh with their next three league games against Kilmarnock, St Johnstone and Ross County – all matches head coach Neil Critchley will no doubt see as winnable.
Watt’s first of season halts Motherwell’s losing run
Tony Watt’s first goal of the season for Motherwell came at the perfect time as he struck late to beat St Mirren after a run of three straight Premiership defeats.
It is a goal that could prove decisive for the Steelmen who remain in the top six and just two points behind fourth-placed Dundee United.
The win will have eased some pressure on boss Stuart Kettlewell, but will it also prove the catalyst for Watt to prove his doubters wrong?
He was not welcomed back to Fir Park with open arms after his decision to leave for United in 2022, a few more goals on this loan spell could have the fans cheering for him again.
