Scottish Premiership: Familiarity & intrigue in season 2015-16

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Celtic players celebrating with the Scottish Premirship trophyImage source, SNS
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Celtic are aiming for a fifth straight title success

Ahead of a new campaign, echoes from the one just past continue to be heard.

By what distance will Celtic leave the rest of the teams behind in the league? Can Aberdeen mount a sustained and convincing title challenge? And who amongst the rest will be discarded as also-rans?

Yet the fortunes of Aberdeen, Hearts and Dundee United provide an interesting diversion. The Premiership plays out to familiar themes, but intrigue can still be found lurking in its midst.

Aberdeen seek to close gap

The expectation is of Celtic confirming, again, that no team can bridge the gap to their greater resources, and it is in Europe that the champions will be exposed to more gruelling challenges.

Under Derek McInnes, Aberdeen have become reliably strong, assertive and consistent.

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Can Aberdeen get closer to Celtic this season?

The signing of Graeme Shinnie, the retention of Ryan Jack and Adam Rooney and the hope that Kenny McLean will recover his poise and decisiveness following his move to the club in January, all suggest the team could yet be more effective this campaign.

The players ought to be hardened to the mental challenges that come with their prominence.

Aberdeen had an excellent record against all the top-flight teams other than Celtic last season, but the squad should be better prepared for the expectation level that comes with being the team best equipped to at least pressurise the reigning champions.

Re-building at Tannadice

At Dundee United, the fascination is with the constant process of rejuvenation. Can a team shorn of its three best players - Gary Mackay-Steven, Stuart Armstrong and Nadir Ciftci, all of whom joined Celtic in 2015 - find the means to recover?

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Rodney Sneijder is one of Jackie McNamara's summer signings at Dundee United

Jackie McNamara has to marshal diminishing funds and the brittle promise of youth.

Flaws need to be managed, too, since Rodney Sneijder joins the club from a period of effective exile in the Dutch second tier after initially breaking through at Ajax, and at 24 the midfielder needs to show he has the character and spirit to accompany decent technique and speed.

Hearts back with a bang?

The challenge for Hearts is to maintain their progress, having galloped so relentlessly to the Championship title last season that their rivals could only wilt in response.

The recruitment strategy has been agreed, since the new signings are all arguably better than those they have or will replace in the side, with only Gavin Reilly from Queen of the South being captured for his potential.

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Hearts return to the Premiership after a year-long absence

Juwon Oshaniwa, in particularly, is a thoroughbred footballer and worth the drawn-out process of seeking a visa for the Nigerian left-back.

Battle at the bottom

More grimly, the wonder is which established sides will find themselves in a battle for survival? Finances remain tight across the division and many of the teams have had to struggle just to try to maintain their squads.

Even so, it is possible to assume improvements at most apart from Partick Thistle and Hamilton Academical.

The tendency is for teams at the top and at the bottom to be cut adrift from the rest as the season unfolds, and to that end this campaign is likely to have a familiar feel to it.

How the teams are shaping up

Aberdeen

Likely formation: 4-2-3-1

Typical team: Ward, Logan, Taylor, Reynolds, Considine, Jack, Shinnie, McGinn, McLean, Hayes, Rooney

Strengths: There is depth to the squad in central midfield and in defence, while Rooney and Goodwillie's competition up front spurs the two on

Weakness: The lack of comparable stand-ins to McGinn and Hayes on the wings

Celtic

Likely formation: 4-2-3-1

Typical team: Gordon, Lustig, Boyata, Van Dijk, Izaguirre, Brown, Biton, Mackay-Steven, Johansen, Armstrong, Ciftci

Strengths: The attacking midfield options, since the likes of Commons and Forrest cannot be sure to start games

Weakness: The defensive qualities of Izaguirre, hence the summer pursuit of a new left-back

Dundee

Likely formation: 4-3-3

Typical team: Bain, Irvine, McPake, Etxabeguren, Holt, Ross, Thomson, Low, Stewart, Loy, Roberts

Strengths: Stewart, Loy, Hemmings, Roberts and Tankulic should provide goals and a cutting edge

Weakness: A period of adjustment is likely as new signings like Holt and Etxabeguren come to terms with the step up from the lower leagues

Dundee United

Likely formation: 4-2-3-1

Typical team: Szromnik, McGowan, Dillon, Morris, Dixon, Paton, Sneijder, Dow, Telfer, Muirhead, Bilate

Strengths: Potential and the promise of developing talents like Souttar, Spittal, Telfer and Coote

Weakness: Little strength in depth and a lack of experience in the squad

Hamilton

Likely formation: 4-4-2

Typical team: McGovern, Gordon, Canning, Garcia, Kurakins, Turner, MacKinnon, Crawford, Imrie, Nade, Chamorro

Strengths: Belief, since the majority of the players established themselves in the top flight last season

Weakness: Canning, as player-manager, has to juggle two roles

Hearts

Likely formation: 4-2-3-1

Typical team: Alexander, Paterson, Ozturk, Augustyn, Oshaniwa, Walker, Gomis, Pallardo, Nicholson, Juanma, Sow

Strengths: A rugged, consistent, physically assertive team has been improved by several good signings

Weakness: Key players like Sow, Augustyn and Juanma need to be kept fit throughout the campaign

Inverness Caledonian Thistle

Likely formation: 4-2-3-1

Typical team: Brill, Raven, Warren, Meekings, Tremarco, Tansey, Draper, Christie, Foran, Doran, Mbuyi-Mutombo

Strengths: The stability of the squad means the players are used to each other and performances tend to be reliable

Weakness: A consistent goalscorer needs to step up to replace Billy McKay and Marley Watkins

Kilmarnock

Likely formation: 4-4-2

Typical team: MacDonald, Hamill, Findlay, Connolly, Smith, Magennis, Higginbotham, McCulloch, Robinson, Carrick, Boyd

Strengths: A better mix of youthful energy and more experienced professionals should make Kilmarnock more robust

Weakness: If Boyd does not recover his scoring form, the team could be blunt in attack

Motherwell

Likely formation: 4-4-2

Typical team: Twardzik, Law, Laing, McManus, Hammell, Ainsworth, Lasley, Pearson, Johnson, McDonald, Clarkson

Strengths: Scott McDonald's spikiness and endeavour up front will provide a cutting edge and keep opponents wary

Weakness: Some key players are approaching the end of their careers

Partick Thistle

Likely formation: 4-4-1-1

Typical team: Cerny, Miller, Seaborne, Frans, Booth, Amoo, Welsh, Bannigan, Lawless, Stevenson, Doolan

Strengths: Cerny is a good signing as a goalkeeper with top-flight experience who will also marshal the defence

Weakness: Goals, since Thistle have struggled to score consistently

Ross County

Likely formation: 4-4-2

Typical team: Fox, Foster, Davies, Boyd, Holden, Gardyne, Irvine, Murdoch, Dingwall, Graham, De Vita

Strengths: The signing of Andrew Davies brings experience and defensive nous to Ross County

Weakness: The squad is light in numbers

St Johnstone

Likely formation: 4-4-2

Typical team: Mannus, Mackay, Anderson, Scobbie, Easton, Wotherspoon, Millar, Lappin, Craig, O'Halloran, MacLean

Strengths: Defensive, solid and sound base in midfield

Weakness: Again, it comes down to finding a regular, reliable source of goals

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