Both looking to bounce back from defeat on the opening day, Kilmarnock are set to host St Johnstone at the BBSP Stadium Rugby Park on Sunday in matchday two of the 2024-25 Scottish Premiership.
The hosts suffered a humiliating 4-0 loss to champions Celtic in their first game, while the visitors were narrowly defeated 2-1 by Aberdeen.
Match preview
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Kilmarnock have done a brilliant job of climbing up the standings of Scottish football since their relegation from the Scottish Premiership in 2020-21, winning promotion as champions in 2021-22 before recording 10th and fourth-placed finishes in the following two seasons.
Derek McInnes has been in charge for the majority of that ascent, taking over in January 2022 with the club in the Scottish Championship, and he will be aiming to keep Kilmarnock in the top six for the second consecutive year, something they have not achieved since 2017-2019.
Killie did endure a mixed pre-season in preparation for the new term, winning three and losing two of their five friendlies, and that has appeared to carry into the beginning of the competitive campaign.
They suffered a 2-1 aggregate loss to Cercle Brugge in the second qualifying round for the Europa League, followed by a 4-0 defeat to Celtic in their opening league game and, most recently, drawing 2-2 in the first leg of their Europa Conference League third qualifying round tie with Tromso IL.
That run leaves McInnes's men without a victory in any of their opening four fixtures in the 2024-25 season, something the manager will be desperate to change in this one.
Despite their unfavourable form, they will fancy their chances of achieving a victory against a St Johnstone side that narrowly survived in the top flight last campaign.
The visitors finished 10th in the regular season, one point above Ross County in the relegation playoff spot, and a win against Motherwell in the final post-split match spared them from having to face Raith Rovers in the playoff match.
The vital three points moved them onto 35 points, level with Ross County, and back into 10th place thanks to a better goal difference, consigning Ross County to the playoff final, which they comfortably won 6-1 on aggregate.
That victory against Motherwell seemed to kickstart a run of positive form for Craig Levein's men, winning six of their following eight matches across pre-season, the Scottish League Cup and the Scottish Premiership.
One of their two losses during that run did come in their opening league match against Aberdeen last week, where they lost 2-1 despite a fairly even contest.
St Johnstone have fared reasonably well in the past meetings between these two teams, winning three of the last six clashes, although they have fallen to defeat in each of the most recent two encounters.
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Team News
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McInnes will have a fully fit squad to choose from for their second match of the 2024-25 Scottish Premiership season, and he could make multiple changes from their opening day defeat to Celtic.
Oliver Bainbridge, Fraser Murray and David Watson made way for Joe Wright, Danny Armstrong and Bruce Anderson for their draw against Tromso in midweek, and all three could continue in the side here.
On the back of 11 goals last season, Kyle Vassell opened his account for this campaign with the opening goal against Tromso, and the striker will be searching for his first in the league in this one.
The visitors will be without Uche Ikpeazu, who is out with an injury until September, while Sam McClelland is also a doubt after being taken off in the 52nd minute of their defeat to Aberdeen.
Despite suffering a loss in their opening game, they produced a performance with plenty of positives, and Levein could opt to name the same starting side here, with Jack Sanders replacing McClelland.
Kilmarnock possible starting lineup:
McCrorie; Mayo, Wright, Findlay; Armstrong, Lyons, Donnelly, Polworth, Kennedy; Vassell, Anderson
St Johnstone possible starting lineup:
Rae; Neilson, Sanders, Cameron, Raymond; Wright, MacPherson, Smith, Essel; Sidibeh, Mbunga-Kimpioka
We say: Kilmarnock 2-1 St Johnstone
Although St Johnstone have enjoyed a good run of results and performed well in their defeat to Aberdeen, Kilmarnock will be strong favourites for a victory, driven by an ambition of playing in the Championship round for the second consecutive year, and we believe the hosts will secure the win.
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Ellis Stevens
