Celtic will begin the defence of their Scottish Premiership crown on Saturday when Ross County make the trip to Parkhead.
Unsurprisingly, not only are the Bhoys big favourites to win this encounter against a side with many new faces, they are also expected to retain their title by a comfortable margin.
Celtic
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It has been a strange pre-season for Ronny Deila's men, who have spent much of their summer battling for a place in the group stages of the Champions League.
Stjarnan of Iceland were disposed of in the first qualifying round, but a 1-0 victory in the first leg over Azerbaijani outfit Qarabag FK has left their progress to the third qualifier hanging firmly in the balance.
One striking feature of those games has been Celtic's failure to create many chances, despite the fact that they have dominated possession of the ball.
Deila conceded that it was a cause of concern for him when he said after the win against Qarabag FK: "Defensively we were solid and they are very hard to break down and we didn't create enough crosses. In the second half we got better but still had a lot to do. We had possession and pressure on them but we have to turn that into more chances."
Nevertheless, against a side that finished ninth last term, the Celtic attackers are likely to fancy their chances of scoring a few goals. They certainly had no problem finding the net domestically last term, having scored 84 goals, which was 26 more than nearest challengers Dundee United.
Deila has made some additions this summer and more new arrivals are anticipated, but perhaps the best piece of business that the club will do this summer involves goalkeeper Craig Gordon, who signed a fresh contract earlier this week.
On an extra positive note, Celtic were in good form in front of their own supporters towards the end of last season, winning their last five games and scoring 19 goals in the process.
Recent form: WWWWWW
Recent form (all competitions): WWWWDW
Ross County
Few managers have been busier in Scotland than Jim McIntyre, who has boosted his Ross County squad with no fewer than 12 new players this summer.
Most recent to arrive at the Dingwall club are Australian midfielder Jackson Irvine and young goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann on a six-month loan deal from Stoke City.
Such a hefty number of arrivals is an indication that McIntyre is eager for his side to enjoy a more comfortable campaign, having spent much of last season looking nervously over their shoulder.
One area that the boss will no doubt have been working on with his players during pre-season training is his defensive unit. After all, in 2014-15 only St Mirren conceded fewer goals than County as they let in a hefty 63 - 32 of which were shipped away from home.
As far as friendly encounters go, it has been a mixed bag for County as they opened up with wins over Nairn County and Elgin City. However, that has been followed up by a 1-1 draw with Soroksar and then defeats at the hands of Szolnoki and NEC.
Recent form: WLDLWW
Recent form (all competitions): WWWDLL
Team News
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A six-match ban for biting has ruled summer signing from Dundee United Nadir Ciftci out of this clash for Celtic.
In his absence, Leigh Griffiths, who hit a hat-trick during a recent friendly, could lead the home side's attack.
In defence, Charlie Mulgrew has suffered a knee injury, which could hand a starting opportunity to Emilio Izaguirre, while having only just recovered from a foot injury, Kris Commons is likely to start among the substitutes.
As for the visitors, they will be without the services of defender Jamie Reckord because of an Achilles complaint.
Celtic possible starting lineup:
Gordon; Lustig, Boyata, Van Dijk, Izaguirre; Brown, Bitton; Mackay-Steven, Johansen, Armstrong; Griffiths
Ross County possible starting lineup:
Bachmann; Fraser, Boyd, Holden, Davies; Quinn, McShane, De Vita, Irvine; Graham, Boyce
Head To Head
It would be fair to suggest that County do not tend to enjoy coming up against the 46-time champions of Scotland.
Since 2004, these two teams have faced each other on 13 occasions, with County winning just twice. As for Celtic, they have six victories to their name, which have yielded a return of 25 goals.
In the three encounters last term, not only did County fail to record a win, they were also unable to breach the Celtic net.
We say: Celtic 3-0 Ross County
The fact that Celtic have spent much of their summer playing competitive football could well work in their favour. They should be much sharper than their opponents, who have a lot of new players to integrate. Anything less than a routine win for the home side would be a major surprise.
Liam Apicella
