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2006–07 in Scottish football

The 2006–07 season was the 110th season of competitive football in Scotland.

Notable events

2006

  • 9 July: Rangers defender Fernando Ricksen is banned for the club's pre-season trip to South Africa, following an incident on the outbound flight. Manager Paul Le Guen cited "wholly inappropriate and unacceptable" behaviour as the reason for Ricksen's omission. Ricksen later admitted that he fears for his future at Rangers claiming that the club have other motives for wanting him out. He was later loaned to Russian Premier League club Zenit Saint Petersburg.
  • 29 July: Scotland under-19s lose 2–1 to Spain in the final of the European Under-19 Football Championship.
  • 23 October: In the wake of their 2–0 home defeat to Kilmarnock, Hearts head coach Valdas Ivanauskas is given a two-week leave of absence after discussions with majority shareholder Vladimir Romanov. Ivanauskas cited ill-health as the reason for his temporary departure. Sporting Director, and former coach of Belarus, Eduard Malofeev is appointed for the interim.
  • 27 October: Hearts' majority shareholder Vladimir Romanov states that he will sell players if the club fail to beat Dunfermline Athletic in their forthcoming fixture. Club captain Steven Pressley released a statement shortly after expressing the players' discontent at the current situation at the club.
  • 14 November: After their 1–1 draw away at Falkirk, Hearts announce that interim head coach Eduard Malofeev is to be replaced by FBK Kaunas manager Eugenijus Riabovas, this is to allow Malofeev to pursue his Uefa coaching Pro-licence.
  • 24 November: Valdas Ivanauskas returns as Hearts head-coach.
  • 9 December: Hearts part company with captain Steven Pressley.
  • 20 December: Dundee part company with striker Andy McLaren after he was given three red cards in a 2–1 defeat to Clyde.

2007

  • 1 January: It is reported that Barry Ferguson has been stripped of the captaincy of Rangers and will not play for the club again under Paul Le Guen. Gavin Rae is appointed as the new captain.
  • 2 January: Paul Le Guen confirms that Gavin Rae will be the new Rangers captain. With regard to Barry Ferguson he stated "When you have someone you feel undermines you, it becomes harder and harder". Asked whether Ferguson had been placed on the transfer list, Le Guen said "It remains to be seen. My own position, which is precarious, may have an influence on that."
  • 4 January: Paul Le Guen leaves Rangers by mutual consent after meeting with Rangers chairman Sir David Murray.
  • 8 January: The Scottish Football Association reject an approach from Rangers for manager Walter Smith. A statement from the SFA revealed that Smith had requested to be relieved of his contract, however this was refused following a meeting.
  • 10 January: Walter Smith is confirmed as Rangers manager, having resigned from his position as Scotland manager. The SFA release a statement stating that "No agreement has been reached with Mr Smith or Rangers Football Club on any compensation payment" and "In the absence of agreement, proceedings will require to be raised against Mr Smith for breach of contract and Rangers Football Club for inducement to breach the contract."
  • 11 January: The SFA agree a compensation package with Rangers over manager Walter Smith's switch to Ibrox.
  • 2 March: For the second time of the season, Hearts manager Valdas Ivanauskas is given leave of absence by the club. Sporting Director, and former CSKA Moscow player Anatoly Korobochka is appointed on a temporary basis.
  • 18 March: Hibernian win the Scottish League Cup, defeating Kilmarnock 5–1 in the final.
  • 7 April: Second Division team Forfar Athletic become the first team in Scotland to confirm their relegation following a 9–1 defeat by Greenock Morton.
  • 14 April: Greenock Morton are promoted as champions of the Second Division, despite losing 2–0 to Raith Rovers.
  • 21 April: Berwick Rangers are promoted as champions of the Third Division after a 1–0 win over Arbroath.
  • 22 April: Celtic are crowned Scottish Premier League champions for the second successive season after defeating Kilmarnock 2–1.
  • 28 April: Gretna win promotion to the Premier League as First Division champions after beating Ross County 3–2 at Victoria Park, a result that relegated County to the Second Division.
  • 3 May: East Stirlingshire, having finished bottom of the Third Division for the fifth consecutive season, are told they will lose full member status if the club finish bottom again next season.
  • 5 May: Rangers ensure second place in the SPL and entry to the UEFA Champions League Second qualifying round after defeating Celtic 2–0 at Ibrox.
  • 12 May: Queen's Park gain promotion to the Second Division after defeating East Fife 7–2 on aggregate in the promotion play-off. The Glasgow club swap places with Stranraer who lost to East Fife in the semi-final stage.
  • 12 May: Stirling Albion gain promotion to the First Division, and swap places with Airdrie United, after defeating the North Lanarkshire club 5–4 on aggregate in the promotion/relegation play-off match
  • 12 May: Dunfermline Athletic are relegated to the First Division. A 2–1 defeat at Inverness, coupled with St Mirren's 3–2 win at Motherwell, meant the Fife club exit the SPL after seven seasons in the top flight.
  • 16 May: Sevilla win the UEFA Cup after defeating Espanyol 3–1 on penalties at Hampden Park. The match had finished 2–2 after 90 minutes.
  • 20 May: Aberdeen seal a UEFA Cup place for next season after defeating Rangers 2–0 at Pittodrie in the final game of the season.
  • 26 May: SPL champions Celtic complete the double after defeating Dunfermline Athletic 1–0 to win the Scottish Cup for the 34th time.

Major transfer deals

2006

Celtic made preparations for the Champions League with the high-profile signings of Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink from PSV Eindhoven, Jiri Jarosik from Chelsea and Thomas Gravesen from Real Madrid while Stilyan Petrov left to join former boss Martin O'Neill at Aston Villa. Celtic also signed former Rangers striker Kenny Miller on a free transfer from Wolverhampton Wanderers. Rangers, under new manager Paul Le Guen, brought in several players including Jérémy Clément from Paris Saint Germain and Filip Sebo from Austria Vienna while Peter Løvenkrands departed for Schalke 04. Hearts paid £200,000 for PAOK defender Christos Karipidis and sold Rudi Skácel to Southampton after a dispute between the player and the club. Hibs brought in English League Two defenders Rob Jones and Shelton Martis but lost last season's top scorer Derek Riordan who joined Celtic.

Domestic

In

Out

2007

Celtic further strengthened their squad with the signings of Paul Hartley from Hearts and Mark Brown from Inverness, while Steven Pressley was also signed after being released by Hearts. Shaun Maloney joined Aston Villa after contract negotiations broke down. New Rangers manager Walter Smith brought in defenders David Weir, Andy Webster and Ugo Ehiogu and spent £2m on Hibs' highly rated midfielder Kevin Thomson. Hearts looked to boost their European qualification hopes with the signing of a further four players on loan from FBK Kaunas as well as Laryea Kingston from Terek Grozny. New Dunfermline boss Stephen Kenny brought in loan signings James O'Brien from Celtic, Adam Hammill from Liverpool and Stephen Glass from Hibs with the club bottom of the SPL.

Domestic

In

Out

Managerial changes

League competitions

Scottish Premier League

Scottish First Division

Scottish Second Division

Scottish Third Division

Cup honours

Non-league honours

Senior honours

Junior honours

West Region

East Region

North Region

Individual honours

SPFA awards

SWFA awards

Scottish clubs in Europe

Summary

<small>Average coefficient – 6.750</small>

Celtic

Heart of Midlothian

Rangers

Gretna

Hibernian

Scotland national team

Key
  • (H) = Home match
  • (A) = Away match
  • ECQ(B) = European Championship qualifying (Group B)

Deaths

  • 18 July: Jimmy Leadbetter, 78, Ipswich Town winger.
  • 21 July: Bert Slater, 70, Falkirk and Dundee goalkeeper.
  • 5 November: Bobby Shearer, 74, Rangers, Hamilton and Scotland defender; Queen of the South manager.
  • 13 May: Kai Johansen, 66, Morton and Rangers defender.

References

External links