Fresh from a dramatic, storm-hit weekend, the Scottish Premiership moves directly into an intriguing midweek slate. The card is headlined by Derek McInnes taking Rangers to face former club Hearts at Tynecastle, Jim Goodwin's flying Dundee United testing their form at Celtic Park, and winless Hibernian boss Marink Reedijk seeking an essential breakthrough at St Mirren.
Wednesday's clash in Gorgie holds immense significance, with Hearts sitting just four points behind Rangers and desperate to rebound from their spectacular collapse at Celtic Park ten days ago. McInnes, who came within minutes of delivering a historic league title to Hearts in May, departed for Ibrox in the summer alongside Lawrence Shankland and Cammy Devlin, both of whom will miss this match due to injury. McInnes admitted harboring "guilt" over his departure and expects a frosty greeting. "Well, the hope would be you get on to the pitch and clap the fans and there's an acknowledgement both ways," McInnes explained. "But that's not going to happen. I totally understand it, though."
In Glasgow, Dundee United will attempt to break a 34-year curse against Celtic. Martin O'Neill's champions are unbeaten in 51 home matches across all competitions against United since December 1992. However, Goodwin's team enter Celtic Park on a five-game unbeaten streak and in fourth spot following a thrilling 3-2 win over Aberdeen. The manager has transformed United's style, drawing inspiration from Jens Berthel Askou's prior setup at Motherwell. Although Goodwin triumphed in two of his previous three meetings with Celtic last term, both came at Tannadice.
At the opposite end of the table, basement side Hibernian visit St Mirren following three successive defeats. Manager Reedijk confirmed that Sunday's emergency move to deploy centre-back Grant Hanley as a striker will not be repeated, though former midfielder Kevin Thomson remains confident the Dutchman will succeed. Hibs take solace in losing only two of their last 14 Premiership trips to Paisley, even as St Mirren halted their own five-game skid by beating Dundee. Reedijk remains steadfast, stating: "The positivity in the club is really good... we have also shown there is progress. Again, I'm a believer that the results will come."