SPL Season Preview

We are still in July, yet the season is about to start in Scotland and Gordon Strachan's Celtic will be the team to beat in The SPL once again.

The Bhoys proved top dogs last term, but Old Firm rivals Rangers have brought in a new manager and Hearts will again fancy their chances.

The big three are sure to be tough to beat, but the nine other teams will be looking to make their own mark - including promoted St Mirren - and skysports.com will look to point you in the right direction ahead of the 2006/2007 season.

Aberdeen
Dons chief Jimmy Calderwood has endured a summer of frustration in the transfer market, as the financial situation at Pittodrie has allowed him to bring in just two new faces.

Calderwood used his contacts in Holland to bring in defender Karim Touzani from Twente but it remains to be seen if his capture will offset the loss of Kevin McNaughton to Cardiff.

The Dons may still be in a transitional phase, but Calderwood has a number of decent youngsters at his disposal and the Pittodrie faithful will be keen for their side to be challenging towards top end of the table.

In: Karim Touzani (Twente); Derek Soutar (Dundee).

Out: Kevin McNaughton (Cardiff City); Ryan Esson (Shrewsbury Town); Danny Griffin (Dundee); Neil MacFarlane (Gretna); Ashley McInnes, Robert Thomson.

Celtic - CHAMPIONS
The Bhoys were comfortably the best side in The SPL last term and they are likely to find life tougher in the new campaign.

Roy Keane has called time on his career and Strachan will have to fill a considerable hole in the centre of the park.

Czech midfielder Jiri Jarosik could be the man to take on that role, although the uncertainty surrounding the future of Stilian Petrov has cast a shadow over Strachan's pre-season preparations.

Strachan is still looking to freshen up his squad, as the departure of John Hartson has left him short in attack, but it could provide the youngsters in the squad with the chance to take on prominent roles in the new campaign.

In: Derek Riordan (Hibernian); Jiri Jarosik (Chelsea); Kenny Miller (Wolverhampton Wanderers); Gary Caldwell (Hibernian); Evander Sno (Feyenoord).

Out: John Hartson (West Bromwich Albion); Roy Keane (retired); Dion Dublin, Ross Harris (Dundee); Paul McGowan (Morton, loan)

Dundee United
Terrors fans have had little to cheer about in the last two seasons, having finished ninth in 2005 and 2006, but hopes are high that Craig Brewster can mount a revival.

Brewster has made a couple of astute signings, but there could be further new blood arriving at Tannadice before the summer is out, as chairman Eddy Thompson has given the green light to a squad overhaul.

The Tannadice chief may not have got all the players on his wish list over the summer, but there is enough quality in the squad to ensure they can finish higher than ninth this time around.

In: Noel Hunt (Dunfermline Athletic); Steven Robb (Dundee), Craig Conway (Ayr United), Scott Thomson (Dunfermline Athletic)

Out: Jim McIntyre (Dunfermline Athletic), Craig Samson (Ross County), Matthew Flynn, Kieran McAleenan, Derek McInnes (Millwall)

Dunfermline
Dunfermline have struggled over the last two seasons and only narrowly avoided relegation to the second tier of Scottish football last term.

Manager Jim Leishman has his hands tied financially and many feel they could struggle to keep their heads above water this term.

He has wheeled and dealed to the best of his ability in the transfer market and will hope experienced striker Jim McIntyre can complement the youthful exuberance of Souleymane Bamba and Calum Woods.

The Pars could surprise, but the fans should brace themselves for another season of toil.

In: Souleymane Bamba (Paris Saint Germain); Owen Morrison (Bradford City); Dorus de Vries (ADO Den Haag); Calum Woods (Liverpool); Phil McGuire (Doncaster Rovers); Roddy McKenzie (Livingston); Jim McIntyre(Dundee United).

Out: Sean Murdoch (Forfar Athletic, loan); Noel Hunt (Dundee United); Lee Makel (Livingston); Simon Donnelly (Partick Thistle); Scott Thomson (Dundee United); Derek Young, Andy Campbell, Gardar Gunnlaugsson, Bartosz Tarachulski, Yannick Zambernardi.

Falkirk
Falkirk defied the odds last term by retaining their SPL status, but the second season is often a bigger challenge.

The Bairns do not have the financial power of a number of their rivals and manager John Hughes has made just two signings this summer.

Hughes, in contrast, has trimmed his squad by releasing a number of fringe players and life could be tough for The Bairns in the new campaign.

Somewhat surprisingly, Falkirk's away form outstripped their home efforts last term and they will have to improve their play at The Falkirk Stadium if they are to prosper.

In: Scott Higgins (Queensland Roar); Christopher Mitchell (Livingston).

Out: Andrew Lawrie (St Johnstone); Neil Scally (Queen of the South); Scott McKenzie (Queen of the South); Craig McPherson, Ian McSween, Daniel McBreen, Allan Ferguson, Darren Hill, Nicholas Boyle, Craig Donaldson, David Easton, Daryl Johnson, Paul MacAloney, Stephen Manson, Scott Mauchline, Mark Ramsay.

Hearts
The Jambos proved to be Celtic's main challengers last term and expectation has been raised in the capital.

The management situation at Tynecastle commanded much of the summer headlines, but with Valdas Ivanauskas now in place the focus can shift to squad strengthening.

Ivanauskas will have to make do with what he has got for the first couple of weeks of the season but, with owner Vladimir Romanov desperate for success, a spending spree is likely to boost a squad who have European football on the agenda in the new campaign.

Out: Garry Tierney (Airdrie United); Dennis Wyness (Inverness Caledoonian Thistle); Graham Weir (Queen of the South); Jason Thomson (Livingston, loan); Craig Sives (Partick Thistle, loan).

Hibernian
Hibs secured a fourth-place finish last term, but the spine of their squad has been lured to Celtic and it could prove tough for the club to mount a title challenge.

SPL champions Celtic have snared Derek Riordan and Gary Caldwell and manager Tony Mowbray has made just one summer signing - Rob Jones from Grimsby Town.

Mowbray has a number of promising youngsters coming through the ranks, but they tumbled out of the Intertoto Cup earlier in the summer and it could be a sign that this may be a season of struggle.

In: Rob Jones (Grimsby Town, undisclosed).

Out: Derek Riordan (Celtic); Gary Caldwell, (Celtic); Gary Smith, (Cowdenbeath).

Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Caley brushed off the departure of Craig Brewster mid-way through last term to secure a seventh-place finish and Charlie Christie will be looking to keep up the momentum.

Brewster has tried to raid his former club, but Caley have stood firm to retain the services of Darren Dods, Ian Black and David Proctor and Christie will hope the faith is vindicated.

In: John Rankin (Ross County); Dennis Wyness (Hearts).

Out: Juanjo, Ben Jackson, Darren Jarvie, Martin Rutherford, Chris Ross, Chris Sutherland, Jamie Tulloch, Chris Finnegan.

Kilmarnock
Killie defied the odds to finish fifth last term, but they could find it tough to repeat the dose in the new campaign.

The departure of Kris Boyd in January hit the club hard and Jim Jefferies has not been able to find a replacement.

Grant Murray and Andrew Barrowman have been brought in, but the captures from Partick and Walsall respectively hardly set the pulse racing.

There have been very few departures from Rugby Park, but Jefferies may struggle to bring another top-six finish.

In: Andrew Barrowman (Walsall); Grant Murray (Partick Thistle).

Out: Gary McDonald (Oldham Athletic); Rory Loy (Rangers).

Motherwell
Manager Terry Butcher moved on this summer, but the club feel they have secured an adequate replacement in the guise of Maurice Malpas and hopes will be high they can improve on last term's eighth place.

It has not all been a bed of roses at Fir Park, as Steven Hammell has headed to Southend and Australian striker Scott McDonald is keen to move on.

Malpas has signed Ross McCormack and Brian McLean from Rangers and will be hopeful the pair can make an impact.

In: Ross McCormack (Rangers); Brian McLean (Rangers).

Out: Steve Hammell (Southend United); Abel Thermeus, Kenny Wright,(Stranraer); Peter Alexiou, John Paul Grant, John Kane (Partick Thistle); John McStay, Ryan Russell.

Rangers
Paul Le Guen has swept into Ibrox and he will be expected to deliver the title in his first season at the helm.

The Frenchman has been given the green light to raid the transfer market and he has made some astute signings, notably Jeremy Clement.

They have lost some key players, with Peter Lovenkrands the most high-profile departure, and their hopes of pegging back Celtic could rest on the shoulders of Dado Prso and Kris Boyd.

In: Makhtar N'Diaye (Yverdon-Sport); Jeremy Clement (Lyon); Libor Sionko (Austria Vienna); Karl Svensson (Gothenburg); William Stanger (Rennes); Antoine Ponroy, defender (Rennes); Dean Furman (Chelsea); Lionel Letizi (Paris Saint Germain); Rory Loy (Kilmarnock).

Out: Ross McCormack (Motherwell); Peter Lovenkrands (Schalke); Ronald Waterreus, Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Zura Khizanishvili (Blackburn Rovers); Alex Rae (Dundee); Gary MacKenzie (Dundee); Brian McLean (Motherwell); Mark Kalenga, Graeme Watson, John Johnston, Jason Crooks, Craig Frizzel.

St Mirren
The Saints face a tough task to ensure their return to the top flight is not just a passing visit.

Gus MacPherson's charges proved a cut above their rivals in Division One last term, but The SPL is a jump in class and with little summer transfer activity, they could face a tough test of their talents.

In: Alex Burke (Ross County); Richard Brittain (Livingston); Garry Brady (Dundee); Stuart Balmer (Hamilton Academical)

Out: David Martin, Ian Milne, Gary Gillespie, Scott McFarlane.

Celtic Evs, Rangers 11/10, Hearts 8/1, Hibernian 150/1, Aberdeen 400/1, Kilmarnock 600/1, Inverness 600/1, Dundee United 1000/1, Motherwell 1000/1, Falkirk 3000/1, Dunfermline 3000/1, St Mirren 5000/1 - Click for Sky Bet odds

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