Premiership focus on Tannadice, Kyogo & Clement

It's top against bottom in the Scottish Premiership as runaway leaders Celtic look to end 2024 with just one league loss, which came back in early March.

St Johnstone are on a winless run of five games, losing four of those, and will be worried to note that the team sitting last at the end of the year has been relegated in seven of the past nine seasons, although the Perth side did buck that trend last season.

Hearts and Ross County are immediately above the Saints and those two meet in Dingwall. The hosts will be feeling good after a big win at Dens Park but have only beaten the Edinburgh side three times in 30 attempts in the top flight.

Hibs and Kilmarnock go head-to-head at Easter Road with the sides much-improved in recent weeks and locked on the same points and, fresh from beating Rangers, St Mirren seek a fourth successive victory at home to Dundee, who aim to avoid a fourth loss on the spin.

Game of the day: Dundee Utd v Aberdeen (17:15 GMT)

There was a time when these two used to be known as the 'New Firm'.

While Aberdeen and Dundee United are currently a long way from the classy 1980s sides that disrupted the Glasgow giants' grip on the game, they are next best in the league.

Jim Goodwin has lost both games against his former club since taking over as United boss, but a win on Sunday would narrow the gap between third and fourth to three points.

And momentum is with the hosts. Ten games into the campaign, the Dons were sitting on a spectacular 28 points, two shy of double United's tally.

Aberdeen's dream start is unravelling as they look for a way to arrest a slump of seven matches without a win. They come into this one having conceded seven goals in losses to Hibs and Kilmarnock. The same group of players let in six in the first seven league games.

Looking jaded, midfield duo Graeme Shinnie and Sivert Heltne Nilsen have been withdrawn in the past two matches, the latter moving straight to Pittodrie after a full season in Norway.

In contrast, United are full of beans, losing just once in eight outings.

Sam Dalby delivered the Boxing Day winner at St Johnstone and the big striker leads the Premiership's scoring charts with nine, while only Rangers and Celtic have conceded fewer goals at home.

Will Ferry is a menace up and down the left flank and Vicko Sevelj is growing more and more influential in the middle of the park.

Player to watch: Kyogo Furuhashi (Celtic)

Kyogo Furuhashi has not been as prolific for Celtic this season, with six league goals so far - level with team-mates Nicolas Kuhn and Callum McGregor.

A substitute in the Boxing Day win over Motherwell, the striker has gone four games without scoring - his longest barren run of 2024-25.

His numbers may well improve at home to St Johnstone though.

The 29-year-old scored twice and set up one up in a 6-0 victory away to the Saints in September.

That means he has been directly involved in nine goals in his last six league meetings with the Perth club, hitting the net six times and assisting a further three.

Manager in spotlight: Philippe Clement (Rangers)

It's rare for losing cup finalists to receive so much praise, but Rangers' disappointment was somewhat soothed by a sense of regard after going toe-to-toe with Celtic in a Hampden epic.

Following excellent Europa League performances against Nice and Tottenham, it seemed the Ibrox team were on the right track after a sticky start to the season. Manager Philippe Clement said his team were "getting better and better".

Rangers then moved up to second place in the Premiership for the first time this season with a narrow win over Dundee.

But a familiar failing came back to haunt them on Boxing Day as St Mirren grabbed a late winner in Paisley.

Rangers have now lost half of their eight away games in the Premiership as they prepare to visit Fir Park.

Motherwell have not enjoyed a home win over Rangers in the top flight since Boxing Day 2002 but might fancy their chances against opponents running short on fit central defenders, while Clement cannot afford another slip on the road before hosting Celtic on 2 January.