Spirit of ’86 looms over Hearts Scottish Premiership title hopes

We thought Hibs would win the Edinburgh Derby 1-0 and that was the score until Hibs, down to none men conceded two late goals to allow the Hearts charge to the title to continue. It looks like only Celtic can stop them now. Daizen Maeda celebrates during the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Falkirk at Celtic Park on April 25, 2026.

(Photo by Zak Mauger/Getty Images) Celtic set the tone on Saturday with a composed 3–1 victory over Falkirk at Celtic Park. The result ensured they kept pace at the top end of the table and, crucially, applied immediate pressure on both their rivals and the leaders Hearts ahead of the Edinburgh Derby. Coming into the weekend knowing that dropped points elsewhere could reopen the race, Celtic delivered a professional performance, continuing a recent resurgence in attacking form that has seen them rediscover their cutting edge at precisely the right moment under Martin O’Neill.

Motherwell celebrate scoring a late winning goal during the Scottish Premiership match between the Rangers and Motherwell at Ibrox Stadium on April 26, 2026. (Photo by WM Sport Media/Getty Images) That pressure told less than 24 hours later at Ibrox, where Rangers suffered what could be a fatal blow to their title ambitions. In a chaotic encounter, they eventually lost 3–2 to Motherwell despite mounting a second-half comeback from two goals down.

The home side looked out of sorts early on, conceding twice before rallying through Youssef Chermiti and Nicolas Raskin. However, a dramatic late winner for Motherwell stunned the Ibrox crowd and left Rangers facing a steep uphill battle in the closing weeks. Youssef Chermiti of the Rangers looking dejected after defeat during the Scottish Premiership match between the Rangers and Motherwell at Ibrox on April 26, 2026.