What did Premiership start tell us about Scottish sides’ Euro hopes?
Scottish Premiership sides used their opening domestic weekend as a warm-up before four clubs enter European qualifying action on Thursday, with mixed signs of readiness ahead of what promises to be a tough week. Rangers, Hearts, Hibernian and Motherwell all face European fixtures this week, while Celtic must wait a fortnight for their Champions League play-off, leaving fans to weigh up how "oven-ready" their teams look so early in the season.
Rangers, second-highest ranked side left in Europa League qualifying, travel to Poland to face Jagiellonia Bialystok, a side with a strong recent Conference League pedigree, after failing to win their Premiership opener at Dundee United and amid concerns over a lack of creativity under new boss Derek McInnes. Hearts face a daunting task against Benfica having already lost 6-0 on aggregate to Sturm Graz in Champions League qualifying and suffered a last-gasp Premiership defeat at Aberdeen, leaving new head coach Wouter Vrancken with a torrid start to his tenure.
- Rangers, Hearts, Hibernian and Motherwell play European qualifiers on Thursday.
- Rangers face Jagiellonia Bialystok in Poland after a shaky league start.
- Hearts face Benfica after heavy Champions League and league defeats.
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