Preview: St Mirren vs. St Johnstone - prediction, team news, lineups

The visitors are currently sat bottom of the Scottish Premiership, meanwhile St Mirren are at the other end of the table in third place, aiming to put more pressure on the Old Firm rivals above them.

Match preview

St Mirren's impressive start to the season has slowed down in recent times, as they have failed to win in their previous three matches in all competitions.

Those results saw them knocked out of the Scottish League Cup while they also slipped down to third in the table after being beaten by Rangers in their last outing.

The Gers came out on top in dominant fashion with a 3-0 win, but an early red card for Ryan Strain certainly did not help matters for the Buddies.

Despite that loss Steve Robinson's men are only three points behind Rangers, which is a gap they will aim to close, but the defensive side of the game will need to be focused on.

St Mirren have already conceded 10 times this season, which is the second-worst record in the top half of the table, and is something holding them back slightly.

The visitors will attempt to exploit that, but they will also be wary of the fact that scoring goals is something that has been difficult for them in this campaign.

St Johnstone have only found the back of the net three times in eight games, which is a big reason for the club struggling to pick up points.

The Saints are currently propping up the table after failing to win a single match, but with only three points between them and 10th place, things could change with just one win.

Steven MacLean's men proved that they are capable of defending well last weekend when they kept a clean sheet against Aberdeen, but the goalless draw saw them fail to register a single shot on target.

That poor attacking record has tended to be worse on the road as St Johnstone have not scored in any of their trips yet, but changing that this weekend could aid their attempts to escape the relegation zone.

St Mirren Scottish Premiership form:

D

D

W

W

D

L

St Mirren form (all competitions):

D

W

W

L

D

L

St Johnstone Scottish Premiership form:

D

D

L

L

D

D

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Team News

St Mirren will be without Strain for this fixture as his suspension begins following his recent red card, which could open up the door for Caolan Boyd-Munce to get some minutes.

Toyosi Olusanya led the line last time out for the Buddies, and that is expected to continue with Greg Kiltie providing width for him.

After keeping a clean sheet last weekend it is unlikely any changes will be made to the back four for St Johnstone as they aim to continue showcasing strength at from a defensive perspective.

Meanwhile, the pressure will continue to mount on the attacking options with the likes of Stevie May, Luke Jephcott and Graham Carey needing to start finding the back of the net.

St Mirren possible starting lineup:

Hemming; Fraser, Gogic, Dunne; Boyd-Munce, Baccus, O'Hara, Tanser; McMenamin, Olusanya, Kiltie

St Johnstone possible starting lineup:

Mitov; Gordon, Considine, Robinson, Wright; Phillips, Sprangler, Carey; Kucheryavyi; Costelloe, Jephcott

We say: St Mirren 2-0 St Johnstone

St Mirren have been in a difficult patch of form as of late, but they will likely see playing the team at the bottom of the league as the perfect way to change that.

St Johnstone's struggles in front of goal will likely be their downfall once again, which could lead to the hosts taking all three points.

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