"Rangers" won the duel for second place.

2006-12-23 19:24 © EuroFootball.com

Pre-holiday Saturdays were successful for Glasgow and Edinburgh clubs - once again, the leader "Celtic" increased its advantage against pursuers to 16 points, "Rangers" won in the battle for second place against "Aberdeen", moving up three points into fourth place by winning away against "Hearts", while "Hibernian" took advantage of "Kilmarnock's" failure and crushed "St. Mirren" to jump to fifth position. In the central match of the round, Aberdeen's local club clashed with Glasgow "Rangers". Both teams started attacking in the game, and the hosts were closer to scoring first, when the ball hit the post after Darren Mackie's long shot in the 10th minute. Soon, Nacho Novo missed opportunities, but in the 22nd minute, he put "Rangers" ahead - receiving a pass from Libor Sionko, the forward unsuccessfully hit the ball, but it was enough to beat goalkeeper Jamie Langfield. A few minutes later, the visitors took advantage of a failed "Aberdeen" defense and this time, after N. Novo's pass, L. Sionko scored a second goal for "Rangers". The hosts tried to bounce back and Barry Nicholson shot over the goal, while at the end of the first half, "Aberdeen's" forward Lee Miller once again shook the visitors' goalpost, while J. Langfield saved L. Sionko's shot. In the second half, L. Miller missed another chance, and although with five minutes left, Steve Lovell scored for "Aberdeen" after a failed Gavin Rae play, "Aberdeen" couldn't equalize and "Rangers" celebrated a crucial victory overtaking their opponent by one point. "Celtic" increased its lead over "Rangers" to 16 points. The championship leader had a tough time at home against "Falkirk" and only won thanks to Thomas Gravesen's goal in the 23rd minute. The "Celtic" finished the match with ten men, as captain Neil Lennon was sent off the field in the last minute for a brawl with an opponent, and Kenny Miller missed the penalty kick he earned. With four points behind third-placed "Aberdeen", Edinburgh's "Hearts" drop to a position below. In the starting lineup of the team coached by Valdas Ivanauskas for the match against "Dundee Utd" away, main goalkeeper Craig Gordon was missing due to illness, and from the Lithuanians, Marius Žaliūkas, Saulius Mikoliūnas, and Andrius Velička started. The first attempt from distance was made by the hosts' player David Robertson, but at the start of the match, more action took place in the middle of the field and neither team created dangerous opportunities. M. Žaliūkas had the first real chance, but the Lithuanian's header was fantastically saved by goalkeeper Derek Stillie. Later, Craig Conway missed from a few meters away from the post, and within "Hearts", A. Velička and Bruno Aguiar missed chances. Immediately after the break, A. Velička had a great chance, but his shot was saved by the goalkeeper. Just after the 51st minute, replacing S. Mikoliūnas, Nerijus Barasa appeared on the field and soon after Taki Fyssas's header after a handball in the penalty area by Stuart Duff, "Hearts" earned a penalty kick, which was converted by Paul Hartley. The goal inspired "Hearts" and Andrew Driver and Michal Pospisil came close to scoring the second, forcing it just wide. In the 71st minute, Edgaras Jankauskas appeared on the field, replacing A. Velička, but towards the end of the match, the guests had to defend more to maintain their lead - Barry Robson shot the penalty kick against the post, while Christophe Berra headed the ball away from the goal line. After this victory, "Hearts" climb to fourth place with 30 points, while the other Edinburgh club "Hibernian" dropped to one place below. The capital team beat one of the outsiders "St. Mirren" 5-1 at home - the scorers were Guillaume Beuzelin, Christopher Killen, Jay Shields, Merouane Zemmama, Abdessalam Ben Jelloun, while John Sutton scored a consolation goal for the losers. From the second to last position, the players of "Motherwell" rose after unexpectedly losing away against "Kilmarnock", despite finishing the match with nine men, while the absolute outsider "Dunfermline" ended their match against "Inverness" at home in a draw.

Results of the 20th round: