SPFL

McGregor’s late strike the difference in Paisley. 

It was the hosts who started off the more threatening. And on 7 minutes they should have been ahead. Declan John did brilliantly and played a ball across goal towards Conor McMenamin, who failed to convert from close range, on the stretch. In the 15th minute, Sebastian Tounekti cut inside onto his right foot and got a shot off, but his curling effort went over the bar. In the 28th minute, Declan John’s corner was cleared by Celtic, but only as far as Conor McMenamin, who found space on the edge of Celtic’s box, but his brilliant left-footed effort came crashing off the post. In the 43rd minute, St Mirren managed to keep the ball alive following a long throw, the ball fell to Miguel Freckleton, who blazed his shot over the crossbar with Kasper Schmeichel on the deck. HT: St Mirren 0-0 Celtic After 50 minutes, Daizen Maeda looked to be through on goal, but Alexandros Gogic made an incredible sliding challenge to deny the Japanese forward. A bright start to second period from the Champions. After 64 minutes, Keanu Baccus found space outside the box, but his shot was comfortably saved by Kasper Schmeichel. In the 69th minute, St Mirren put the ball in the back of the net. Celtic defender Liam Scales was stretching for it and put the ball in the back of his own net, however, St Mirren’s number 10 Conor McMenamin was in an offside position and deemed to be interfering with play, therefore the goal was disallowed. With just under a quarter of an hour remaining of normal time, Celtic were awarded a free kick right on the edge of the St Mirren box, but Arne Engels’ effort came crashing off the wall. On 79 minutes, Liam Scales played a brilliant ball into the box, Daizen Maeda flicked it on towards the back post, but no Celtic player was there to convert. In the 83rd minute, Declan John took a shot from a tight angle, with Jonah Ayunga free at the back post, and his shot was easily saved by the Danish keeper. Deep into stoppage time, Celtic found the breakthrough. Callum McGregor worked some space on the edge of the box, and his sensational strike found the top corner. A vital strike from the Celtic skipper, which puts the pressure on Hearts going into their clash against Aberdeen at Pittodrie.

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Fraud investigations ongoing at former Scottish top flight side

Hamilton Accies, once a top flight side who now find themselves in the Scottish League One are under investigation by Police Scotland for possible fraud. The SFA today stated Hamilton owner Seref Zegin and director Gerry Strain are both not “fit and proper” to be in full control of a football club. The pair have been made to leave any position which saw them have full authority, effect or administration they may hold at the League One outfit. Hamilton have faced many point deductions and fines in recent times due to the current state for Accies’ with the club not managing to pay off any tax due as well as funding players wages. In a recent interview with Police Scotland, a spokesperson stated: “On Friday, 23 May, 2025, police (Scotland) received a report of alleged fraud in the Hamilton area. “Information is being assessed and enquiries are ongoing”. The former Premiership side have been kicked out of former home ground, New Douglas Park in which the club now play at Broadwood as fans are scared they may lose their club in the near future and have also netted a £1.8million loss. The League One side sit 7th in the third division, just two points off the Scottish Championship play-offs spot. Accies were faced with a six points deduction earlier in the campaign.

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Aberdeen return to winning ways after big win in Ayrshire

Stuart Armstrong’s first half strike earns Aberdeen crucial win in Ayrshire and ends the Dons’ five year drought at Rugby Park It was an impressive start for the Dons, where they saw the majority of the possession. Aberdeen had a very early chance, but Jesper Karlsson’s effort was blocked. Kilmarnock soon had one of their own, from the edge of the box, but it was well saved by Mitov in goals. Aberdeen found themselves ahead after 16 minutes, Karlsson with an effort deflected off a Kilmarnock defender, where Stuart Armstrong calmly struck it into the corner of the net to send the Dons ahead. Killie had a great chance to draw level, Dackers had an attempt from close range but fired high, which should’ve rattled the back of the net. Aberdeen probably played the better football, but it’s just the one goal which separates the sides going into the break. Killie had a great chance early in the first half, Thomson with a corner into the box, and Deas with a simple tap in at the back post but smashed it high and misses as the ball came quickly at him. Robbie Deas had the ball in the net, a short free kick from Thomson clipped onto Polworth, who whipped it into the box, but Brad Lyons, who put the ball into Deas, found himself offside. Zac Williams nearly had the hosts level again, but a header was saved comfortably by Mitov in goals. Kilmarnock came close once again in the final 15, a corner in from Dominic Thomson, and Lyons coming in quickly with his heading, firing wide of goal. Aberdeen were having to defend well in the latter stages as Kilmarnock were looking very confident in grabbing an equaliser as the hosts piled on the pressure. The home side were piling on the pressure but just weren’t managing to get the ball into the net as the Dons continued to defend for their lives. There were penalty claims by Killie after Dackers was taken down by the goal scorer, Armstrong, but nothing given. The full-time whistle went, as the Dons will be very glad the whistle went, but a crucial three points for Aberdeen as Jimmy Thelin takes the vital win back up to Pittodrie. Player Ratings: Kilmarnock: Oluwayemi 6, Stranger 7, Deas 8, Williams 6, Brannan 6, Watson 6, Lyons 7, Polworth 6, Thomson 7, Dackers 6, Kiltie 6. Subs: John-Jules 6, McKenzie 6, Tiffony 6, Anderson 6. Aberdeen: Mitov 8, Devlin 7, Milne 8, Knoester 7, Jensen 7, Shinnie 7, Polvara 7, Lobban 7, Karlsson 8, Lazetic 6, Armstrong 9. Subs: Nisbet 6.

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Jimmy Thelin and Aberdeen make the trip to Ayrshire to face Kilmarnock

Aberdeen make a trip to Ayrshire in which has proven tough for the Dons’ as pressure mounts on Jimmy Thelin. Kilmarnock haven’t started badly so far this campaign as the Ayrshire side sit 8th only two points off of top six. However, they have only picked up two league wins this season with four draws and three defeats for the Ayrshire side. Aberdeen on the other hand, they have had a poor start to the season as the Dons’ sit 11th just one point off of bottom of the league Livingston. They have also just had the two wins as well the one draw and six defeats in the process. Pressure has been building on Jimmy Thelin since Sunday as Killie look to continue to put the pressure on Jimmy. Form Kilmarnock have lost their last two matches despite them being very tough. The Rugby Park outfit lost to league leaders, Hearts 3-0 before being defeated to Rangers at Ibrox on Saturday. Their last league victory came at the start of October, defeating St Mirren 2-0.  Aberdeen however, they were defeated at home to Hibernian 2-1 in a game which was full of drama with Hibs showing their class in the Granite City. Aberdeen picked up their only two wins recently defeating Dundee 4-0 and a very last gasp winner by Marko Lazetic to secure the win at St Mirren. Last meeting The last time these sides met, Aberdeen ran away 1-0 winners in February thanks to a late Oday Dabbagh goal securing Aberdeen the win. The last meeting in Ayrshire between the sides, Killie won 4-0 on Boxing Day last year to give the Killie support a late Christmas gift. Aberdeen have had very bad luck in Ayrshire as the Dons’ haven’t manage to secure a win at Rugby Park since 2020 with Ryan Hedges and Sam Cosgrove sealing a 2-0 against 10 man Killie. Stats Kilmarnock have found their shooting boots, scoring 7 goals in their last five. The sides have not drawn in the last 13 meetings. Aberdeen have netted on 8 occasions in their last 5. On loan winger, Karlsson has created the most chances for the Dons’ (4). Killie top goal scorer is David Watson with three goals and Lazetic for the visitors with two goals. In this meeting, Aberdeen have won 52, Kilmarnock have won 36 as well as 23 draws. Kilmarnock have won their last four home meetings with Aberdeen although Stuart Kettlewell has lost 8 in his last 11 meetings with Aberdeen.

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Jesper Karlsson on his loan move to Pittodrie in the summer

The Swedish international has came out today and confirmed the reason’s he made the move from Italy to the Granite City. Jimmy Thelin was the main reason the winger moved to Scotland as Jimmy managed Jesper during their time in Sweden at Elfsborg. Two former Aberdeen stars were also apart of the decision of the Bologna winger with former Dons men Lewis Ferguson and Ylber Ramadani playing a pivotal part in the move for the Swedish star. The attacker made a €11.1million (£9.6million) from Dutch side, AZ Alkmaar back in 2023 but has failed to hit the ground running hence why he made the loan move to the Scottish side. Jesper was a key star at Elfsborg during his time with Jimmy Thelin before he made the move to the Netherlands. The winger scored on 46 occasions over a three year spell at AZ Alkmaar and has netted three times in six during his stint in Scotland so far. The Swede confirmed while speaking to the Daily Record: “I spoke to Lewis Ferguson and Ylber Ramadani, so I had some information. “Both were positive about their experience here. They said only good things.” “I have not played many 90 minutes recently,” Karlsson confirmed “I think the last time was in 2023 with the national team. “So I also feel like I am not there yet in my fitness and confidence, although I feel more and more like I am getting it back when I train. “The more I play, I will get better. “It’s a good league with good teams and I have respect for the football here.” Karlsson has 14 Swedish caps and five international goals, but he hasn’t played for his country in two years. That is an ambition once he really hits top gear at Aberdeen Speaking to Daily Jesper said: “First of all, I just have to think about the here and now because I have not played regularly for a long time. “I just hope to reach my best level again here. “That’s my first goal and the other things will come later.” Jimmy Thelin was the main reason the winger moved to Scotland as Jimmy managed Jesper during their time in Sweden at Elfsborg. Two former Aberdeen stars were also apart of the decision of the Bologna winger with former Dons men Lewis Ferguson and Ylber Ramadani playing a pivotal part in the move for the Swedish star. The attacker made a €11.1million (£9.6million) from Dutch side, AZ Alkmaar back in 2023 but has failed to hit the ground running hence why he made the loan move to the Scottish side. Jesper was a key star at Elfsborg during his time with Jimmy Thelin before he made the move to the Netherlands. The winger scored on 46 occasions over a three year spell at AZ Alkmaar and has netted three times in six during his stint in Scotland so far. The Swede confirmed while speaking to the Daily Record: “I spoke to Lewis Ferguson and Ylber Ramadani, so I had some information. “Both were positive about their experience here. They said only good things.” “I have not played many 90 minutes recently,” Karlsson confirmed “I think the last time was in 2023 with the national team. “So I also feel like I am not there yet in my fitness and confidence, although I feel more and more like I am getting it back when I train. “The more I play, I will get better. “It’s a good league with good teams and I have respect for the football here.” Karlsson has 14 Swedish caps and five international goals, but he hasn’t played for his country in two years. That is an ambition once he really hits top gear at Aberdeen. Speaking to Daily Jesper said: “First of all, I just have to think about the here and now because I have not played regularly for a long time. “I just hope to reach my best level again here. “That’s my first goal and the other things will come later.”

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SPFL announce record breaking payout

The SPFL have sent out a record sum to SPFL clubs. The Scottish Professional Football League have today sent out £42million across all 42 clubs in the SPFL which is an increase of 11% from last year’s £37.9million which is now sitting at £42million going up by £4.1million. The SPFL brought in a sum of £50.4million which has surpassed the threshold of £50million, making history. Money paid by the SPFL to teams in the top 4 decision has increased to £35.1million. The TV money has been the main factor for the increase which is also down to the rise of income in the deal with Sky Sports including the 5-year contract with Premier Sports which was to show 20 games a season which has went up to 22 in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Another factor of the sharp rise of revenue was down to the sponsorships, licences and match data with the historic deal with the top betting company. William Hill with last season being the beginning of the 5-year contract. SPFL group chief executive, Neil Doncaster said: “We’re extremely pleased to be able to announce the strongest turnover and total group distributions in the history of Scottish league football. These figures are by some distance the best financial figures in the 12 years of the SPFL. “Against a backdrop of worldwide economic uncertainty, the strong cooperation amongst our clubs and a shared focus to continue to grow our game commercially has been vital to achieving these results. “We’ve recently reported considerably higher attendances per capita than any other European league in a UEFA report for the third year running, and these figures also reflect the high level of interest in our game from broadcasters and partners. Whilst we will never be complacent, we are proud that the league continues to make significant progress, and these financial results represent an important milestone in the history of the SPFL.” SPFL chairman, Murdoch MacLennan said: “Our latest results once again underline the strength and ambition of our game here in Scotland: “Our small but dedicated team at the SPFL is focused on driving forward the league for our 42 member clubs and we will now look to build on this momentum in the months and years ahead.” The fees will be sent out to clubs depending on where clubs finish in their respective league season. Funding will be sent to Scottish Power Women’s Premier League sides as well as prize totals in the Premier Sports Cup and KDM Evolution trophy. Payments for space will also be given in selected Scottish Premiership matches which are shown live on Premier Sports.

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Rangers Are Looking Like ‘Wee Boys’ – Ally McCoist

Former Rangers manager and striker Ally McCoist has said the current playing squad at Ibrox look like “wee boys” and claims that sacked manager Russell Martin and co. were not readily prepared before accepting the job offer in the summer. The Gers axed the ex-Southampton boss just 123 days into his miserable reign, with fans being sceptical pretty much from the beginning. Martin won just once in seven league meetings, and only five times out of seventeen matches in all competitions, as he became the shortest serving permanent manager in the club’s history. Speaking on talkSPORT’s Sportsbreakfast, McCoist said: “The new owners and certainly the old management staff probably underestimated the size of the job and the task. “That aligned to really poor business in the transfer market. “The buck rightly and understandably stops at the manager, but sometimes when you get on the pitch you’ve got to take responsibility, and Rangers just look like wee boys.” When asked who he would bring in to replace Martin, McCoist suggested two England legends and one former Rangers player. “I wish we’d taken my advice for the last one and that was Frank Lampard. my exact tip was Frank Lampard. “I’d quite like to see Steven Gerrard coming back. I don’t think he will though. I don’t know the ins and outs of it but I think he probably has to stay out of the country for a while for other reasons. “We probably missed the boat with Derek McInnes who’s doing a fantastic job at Hearts.” Rangers have the luxury of an international break to find the right replacement for Martin, before they host Dundee United at Ibrox a week on Saturday.

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Former Rangers star believes it must be ‘horrible’ what Russell Martin is going through

Russell Martin was beyond relived his side got their first league victory of the season as they defeated Livingston 2-1 thanks to a Max Aarons winner in stoppage time. The Rangers faithful were still calling for Martin to be sacked even during the celebrations after the last minute winner. It’s been well documented that the 39-year-old was never the popular choice and the win against David Martindale’s men appears to have not changed the opinions of the supporters regarding the Englishman. Martin was asked after the game if Aarons’ goal kept him in a job and he said: “I can’t answer that question because it’s not relevant. He scored and I’m in a job.” It’s been a dismal start for Martin in Glasgow only managing to rack up five wins in 15 games and the unrest amongst the fans continues to get worse. Former Rangers midfielder Derek Ferguson sympathises with the Ibrox boss but doesn’t believe the result against Livi will change anything. He said to BBC Scotland: “I’ll be honest. I’ve not spoken to any Rangers fan that is in favour of Russell Martin. “It’s not nice. It must be horrible for Russell Martin and his family, anyone connected to him. It’s not nice to see anybody go through that. “But the feelings of the Rangers fans towards the manager, I don’t think a victory against Livingston is going to change anything.”

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‘You can’t beat it!’ – Ally McCoist ecstatic after Rangers’ last minute winner

Rangers got their first league victory of the season thanks to Max Aarons’ last gap goal in stoppage time against Livingston.  It was an all important and well needed win for Russell Martin but seconds after the right-back bailed the under-fire Ibrox boss out the Rangers faithful were still chanting for his dismissal. However, footballing icon Ally McCoist watched the game from a pub in London and was over the moon at full-time as the Light Blues picked up the three points. McCoist revealed that the venue was showing the Newcastle vs Arsenal game where Mikel Arteta’s side also bagged a last minute winner and the celebrations were electric: “I sampled it myself at the weekend. “Obviously I went to watch the football, had Viv [wife] down, did the family things on Sunday and went to the pub and watched the football. “I’m sitting there, it was brilliant. “There must’ve been about eight TVs, seven of them showing Newcastle vs Arsenal, and one had Livingston vs Rangers. “And we got a 94th minute winner! “Everybody – and I mean everybody – in the pub was watching Newcastle vs Arsenal and don’t get me wrong I had one eye on it. “Next minute, the guy next to me, I’ve jumped up and screamed at the top of my voice and the guy next to me just about jumped out of his skin because he was watching the Arsenal game. “But that’s what a last minute winner does to me and does to every football fan, you can’t beat it.” Next up for Russell Martin’s men is SK Strum Graz in the Europa League then back to Scottish Premiership action against Falkirk.

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‘I’ve actually, in a perverse way, enjoyed that’ – Russell Martin reveals he thrives on the backlash

It’s safe to say Russell Martin has had a tough start to life at Rangers with many of the Ibrox faithful demanding for his sacking but the under fire boss claims he enjoys the hostility towards him.  The Light Blues won their first game in over a month at the weekend defeating Hibernian 2-0 at Ibrox to progress to the Premier Sports Cup semi-final where they’ll have a showdown with Celtic. There were protests before the game outside the stadium against Martin and chief executive Patrick Stewart as the Rangers fans made their feelings known loud and clear. The Gers have won four games out of 13 and currently sit 11th in the Scottish Premiership table only managing to rack up a total of four points from five games. Martin’s side kickstart their Europa League campaign tonight as they take on Genk, another club who aren’t in a great place as they currently sit third bottom in the Belgian Pro League. Despite the furious backlash against Martin, the 39-year-old said he finds enjoyment in it and believes himself and the players could learn from this tough period: “Being a head coach or manager of any team or club is not easy. There’s obviously so many opinions because of the level of interest in this game and how much it means to people. “I’ve actually, in a perverse way, enjoyed that as well. I think you have to try and find enjoyment in everything. “I’ve said to the players, I’ve said to the staff and it counts for us as well as individuals, the amount of growth that can come from this, in this difficult period in learning, could be huge, could be brilliant for everyone, myself included. “We just have to keep working, do what we believe in and trust that the outcome will be positive.”

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