Saturday 6 August 2016 01:09, UK
It's been a long wait but finally Scottish football has the extra spice of seeing Celtic and Rangers going head to head four times over the course of what promises to be a fascinating and intriguing league season.
Both Glasgow giants open up Sky Sports' live coverage of the Scottish Premiership this weekend with Rangers hosting Hamilton Accies at midday on Saturday while the champions Celtic under new boss Brendan Rodgers make the short trip to the capital to face Hearts on Sunday.
Beating Celtic in the Scottish Cup semi-final a few months ago has given the Rangers fans genuine belief that their team can challenge Celtic for the title but the big question is, how realistic is that?
Even before that win against Celtic, Rangers started strengthening their squad in January with the capture of Matt Crooks and Josh Windass. However, to seriously think about a title challenge, manager Mark Warburton clearly realised he needed a lot more, hence the signings of Niko Kranjcar, Joey Barton, Clint Hill, Lee Hodson, Jordan Rossiter and Joe Dodoo.
I can see Rangers having more strength and intensity than last season and the signings of Barton and Kranjcar should give them a little swagger and arrogance that all top teams need.
With Martyn Waghorn and Barrie Mackay sure to be prominent players for Rangers, I have no doubt the Ibrox men will score goals regularly but defensively they have to improve enormously.
James Tavernier catches plenty of headlines for his extraordinary goalscoring from right back but as he showed in the Scottish Cup final against Hibs, he can be very weak at defending. All three goals scored by Hibs were so soft from a Rangers point of view and it`s their biggest weakness.
The experienced Clint Hill should prove to be a better foil for either Rob Kiernan or Danny Wilson as that partnership were vulnerable far too often last season. I`d be very surprised if Mark Warburton doesn`t bring in another central defender before the transfer window closes.
What of Aberdeen? Strikers Jayden Stockley and Miles Storey are in the north of Scotland to score goals and take the pressure off regular marksman Adam Rooney. And in Johnny Hayes, Niall McGinn and Graeme Shinnie, manager Derek McInnes has players to supply plenty of chances.
Don`t listen to anyone who`ll tell you Aberdeen will be better prepared for a challenge at the top end of the table if they have no Europa League games to contend with.
If the Dons can get through against Maribor and eventually reach the group stages in Europe`s second competition, the education for the players and management in that environment is priceless. More European football is exactly what the Dons players need to improve.
As much as I`m looking forward to Celtic and Rangers going head to head again on Saturday, September 10, the Aberdeen v Rangers clash at Pittodrie two weeks later on September 25 will be equally fascinating. These two have a bitter rivalry of their own that will undoubtedly provide more controversy and talking points in the months ahead.
I was at Tynecastle last Thursday to see Hearts lose to a side from Malta in what was an embarrassing result for Scottish football. The big surprise for me was the vitriol dished out to manager Robbie Neilson when Hearts conceded a second goal.
Hearts have come a long way since exiting administration and to be playing European football after just one season back in the top flight was a big step forward but like most fans, the expectations from the Hearts supporters now are huge. Hearts will take points from Celtic, Rangers and Aberdeen but can just as easily drop points against Kilmarnock, Hamilton Accies and Partick Thistle.
Despite sleepwalking under Ronny Deila for the last two seasons, Celtic at last gave their supporters something to get excited about with the bold and ambitious appointment of Brendan Rodgers. The fans have shown their immediate approval by taking up around 50,000 season tickets.
Clearly, qualifying for the Champions League group stages is the main remit for former Liverpool man Rodgers and they have an excellent chance of further progress after the 1-1 draw in Kazakhstan against Astana.
However, it must be said that changing the manager is not enough. Rodgers will realise that his current squad of players badly needs an injection of quality, not only to give the dressing room a lift but to see them through a long campaign of what they hope will be more domestic dominance as well as Champions League participation.
And yet the management of the Celtic squad over the past two seasons has been completely illogical and disjointed, resulting in a bloated squad with far too many midfielders and wide players unlikely to play.
Much can happen between now and the end of the transfer window but as things stand, my guess is that Celtic will improve under Brendan Rodgers and retain the title for the sixth season in a row. I can see Aberdeen holding off the challenge of Rangers to again finish second with Mark Warburton`s men third.
Watch the Scottish Premiership opening weekend live on Sky Sports this weekend.
Saturday - Rangers v Hamilton Accies is on Sky Sports 1 & 5 from 12pm.
Sunday - Hearts v Celtic is on Sky Sports is on Sky Sports 1 & 5 from 2pm.
