Scottish Premiership Picks: Celtic v Hearts, Tavernier & Levein in spotlight

Only four sets of fixtures to go. Getting nervous? It's a nail-biting time in the Scottish Premiership with five games on Saturday, one on Sunday and much still to be decided.

Celtic can stretch their lead at the top to six points on Saturday before title rivals Rangers play the following day, while Heart of Midlothian and Kilmarnock could officially clinch third and fourth places respectively.

At the bottom, Livingston will be officially relegated if they fail to at least match Ross County's result at home to Hibernian as they visit Motherwell.

Here's a few of the key things to look out for over the weekend...

It's not often that lightning strikes twice, never mind three times, in a single season for non-Old Firm sides against Glasgow's big two.

However, Hearts have the chance to make it a hat-trick of victories over Celtic for the first time since October 1961, when they went on to win five in a row.

It is also that long since the Edinburgh side won consecutive league games at Celtic Park, their 2-0 win in December being their first in 24 visits. It also ended a run of 14 straight defeats there.

This is a Hearts side with a renewed confidence that they can compete with the Old Firm, even if Steven Naismith's side fell short of their own expectations in the recent Scottish Cup semi-final against Rangers.

Nevertheless, while Hearts' results since beating the reigning champions 2-0 at Tynecastle in early March have been a bit up and down, Celtic have gone on another seven-game unbeaten run, winning six of them.

It is a repeat of the scenario after Hearts won by the same scoreline at Celtic Park in December, so Rangers fans will no doubt be viewing this as the best chance of Brendan Rodgers' side slipping up outside of the forthcoming Old Firm derby.

The Northern Irishman's side have, though, done enough in recent weeks to take advantage of Rangers' own blips to re-establish a three-point lead.

While their performances have still been viewed as steady rather than scintillating, Celtic have now won six of their latest seven home league matches, scoring two or more goals in five of those victories.

They have found the net an average of three times per game since that last defeat by Hearts, with veteran winger James Forrest the latest to chip in with three in two matches.

In contrast, Hearts goal machine Lawrence Shankland, who scored in both their recent wins over Celtic, has only added one to his season's tally in his last eight outings.

Naismith's side will be looking to the Scotland striker to help avoid a third straight game without scoring as they look for the victory that will officially end Kilmarnock's hopes of catching them in third place.

James Tavernier is more used to being in the spotlight for his amazing goals contribution - now officially the best by any British defender.

However, the 31-year-old Rangers captain also finds himself under close scrutiny for his role at the other end of the pitch.

It is Connor Goldson who has paid the biggest price for recent defensive lapses that have allowed Celtic to retake the Premiership lead, with the long-established centre-half being benched for two games in a row.

But Tavernier's own form has been such that St Mirren were said to have targeted his right-back position as a potential weak spot last weekend.

The Englishman responded by providing the cross that led to Rangers' winning goal in Paisley and he has now been directly involved in 11 goals across his last 10 Premiership matches, scoring seven and assisting four.

Overall, his 26 goal involvements - 17 goals and nine assists - are the most of any player in the Premiership this season.

That has not stopped Rangers being linked with a move for West Ham United right-back Ben Johnson this week.

Tavernier also had to play down a newspaper report suggesting he might be reunited with former Rangers manager Steven Gerrard at Saudi club Al-Ettifaq.

For now, he will simply be looking to keep Kilmarnock's dangerous wingers, Matty Kennedy and Danny Armstrong, quiet while providing the ammunition needed to secure a seventh consecutive win at Ibrox over the Ayrshire side - and improve on a run of only one win in their latest four home games - to keep their title hopes alive.

When Craig Levein was appointed manager in November, he was viewed by most as "a safe pair of hands" who would surely lift St Johnstone clear of relegation trouble.

The fans' faith has dwindled significantly in the months that followed and the former Scotland manager's side are still involved in a head-to-head with second-bottom Ross County to avoid a play-off.

Add into the mix this week's news that long-term owner Geoff Brown has announced an agreement to sell his controlling interest to American lawyer Adam Webb and the stakes are perhaps now even higher for the 59-year-old.

Webb has revealed no detail about his plans other than "success on the pitch", so Levein and his players will no doubt have even more incentive to improve on a run of four defeats, conceding two or more goals in each, in their latest five league games.

That is easier said than done on Saturday as they visit a steadily improving Aberdeen side under interim manager Peter Leven who have not lost over 90 minutes in six games - their Scottish Cup penalty shoot-out loss to Celtic being the one blip - and are unbeaten in four at home.

However, Saints are unbeaten in their three meetings with Dons this season, draws home and away being followed by a 2-0 win on their last visit to Pittodrie in February.

Including that game, the Saints have won three of their latest six on the road, albeit they lost the other three, so after two successive home defeats, Levein may be happy to take his side to a venue where they have only lost twice in the latest nine visits, winning four of them.