Craig Levein picked up his only league win of the season the last time these sides met. Just over three months on from the 3-0 victory, Derek McInnes will hope to come away with the spoils and create some distance from the Perth club.

We take a look at the biggest talking points from the sides separated by only two points.

Killie waiting to kick into gear

Six games without a win would have put most managers amongst the bookies’ favourites for the sack, but not Derek McInnes.

It seems the man can do no wrong after guiding Kilmarnock into the European places last season, making Rugby Park into one of the league’s most difficult grounds to visit in the process.

The subsequent play-off games as the side were knocked out the Europa and Conference Leagues proved to be too tiring for a squad that seemed to lack the depth to handle the congested fixture list.

Results improved as the side recovered from tired legs, winning half their games since their exit, with Rangers another casualty of Killie’s giant-killing prowess.

Unfortunately, their impressive fourth place finish last season means McInnes has become a victim of his own success. The bar has now been set and fans will expect a similar result come the end the season.

In order to get anywhere near the upper echelons of the table again, they must find some consistency in their results. Defeats to Ross County and Dundee are not as easily forgiven as they once were and another to the Saints would be a further setback in Killie’s attempts to cement their place amongst the top sides.

The manager’s job is by no means on the line, but will nonetheless be desperate to avoid being on the receiving end of another bloody nose.

Saints must halt slow decline

Simo Valakari will no doubt realise that attacking football is little comfort to fans if they find themselves looking at the drop.

What started as the most promising kind of new manager bounce, with six points from nine (Rangers grabbing the difference), has turned into something of a mini-slump for the Saints.

Three defeats on the trot have exposed the fault lines in the squad for all to see. A destructive attacking trio on their day, Benjamin Kimpioka, Nicky Clark and Adama Sidibeh have given new life to a squad that looked out of ideas only a couple of months ago.

For all their promise going forward, St. Johnstone have failed to solve the conundrum that has plagued fellow strugglers Hibernian, how to prevent sides from cutting through them.

With twenty-seven shipped this season, they are the league’s worst defensive unit. The poor form of Ross Sinclair and Josh Rae between the sticks has not helped matters either.

If Valakari is impatiently counting down the days until he can make his first purchases to remedy the situation, he will need to keep one eye on the seven games before the window opens.

Not making the most of the twenty-one points available could see them too far back for any signings to turn things around.