St. Johnstone vs Inverness Caledonian Thistle Match Analysis and Prediction

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Fresh from a 2-2 draw on Friday, St. Johnstone and Inverness Caledonian Thistle take on each other in the second leg of their Scottish Premiership playoff final on Monday.

St. Johnstone were comfortable in the first half of Friday’s first leg, taking the lead through Shaun Rooney and Melker Hallberg, opening up a 2-0 advantage inside the first 24 minutes in Inverness.

However, the Saints were ultimately pegged back in the second half, as Reece McAlear’s late brace ensured that Inverness would have a fighting chance heading into Monday’s second leg.

Callum Davidson’s side finished 11th in the Scottish Premiership, having recorded eight wins, 11 draws and 19 defeats from their 38 matches to collect 35 points.

The Saints are unbeaten against Inverness since August 2016, which should give them confidence heading into this contest, and they won 3-0 when the two clubs last met at McDiarmid Park.

Meanwhile, Inverness finished third in the regular Scottish Championship season, picking up 59 points from their 36 matches, keeping a record of 16 wins, 11 draws and nine defeats during a solid campaign.

Caley Thistle have since defeated Partick Thistle and Arbroath in the playoffs to advance to this stage, and they are now just a game away from securing a return to the Scottish Premiership.

Billy Doods’ side have been absent from the Scottish Premiership since the 2016-17 campaign, spending each of the last four terms in the second division, but their performance in the second half of the first leg on Friday hands them confidence ahead of a tough contest at McDiarmid Park.

Inverness are actually unbeaten in all competitions since a 2-1 reverse at Queen of the South on April 19.

They will be underdogs heading into the second leg, but Doods’s men now realised that they are capable of competing at this level.

St. Johnstone vs Inverness Caledonian Thistle head to head

The two teams have previously met on 36 occasions across all competitions, where they have claimed 14 victories each while they have drawn in eight. St. Johnstone have scored 38 goals and conceded 36 in the process. In their last five meetings, they have won twice each while they have drawn once.

Inverness CT 2-1 St. Johnstone 27/08/16

St. Johnstone 3-0 Inverness CT 03/12/16

Inverness CT 0-3 St. Johnstone 08/04/17

Inverness CT 3-1 St. Johnstone 12/07/19

Inverness CT 2-2 St. Johnstone 20/05/22

St. Johnstone latest home form

St. Johnstone have recently been on a relatively good run of form at home, having lost just one of their four most recent matches. They managed to defeat Aberdeen 1-0 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored four goals and conceded three.

St. Johnstone 0-1 Rangers 02/03/22

St. Johnstone 2-1 Motherwell 19/03/22

St. Johnstone 1-0 Livingston 02/04/22

St. Johnstone 0-1 St. Mirren 30/04/22

St. Johnstone 1-0 Aberdeen 11/05/22

St. Johnstone latest away form

St. Johnstone have recently failed to keep a good run of form on the road, having been winless in their nine most recent matches. They drew 2-2 with Inverness in their last away game in the playoffs. In their last five matches, they have scored four goals and conceded 15.

Celtic 7-0 St. Johnstone 09/04/22

Dundee 1-1 St. Johnstone 23/04/22

Livingston 1-1 St. Johnstone 07/05/22

Hibernian 4-0 St. Johnstone 15/05/22

Inverness CT 2-2 St. Johnstone 20/05/22

Inverness Caledonian Thistle latest home form

Inverness have recently been on a good run of form at home, having been unbeaten in their seven most recent matches. They played out a 2-2 draw with St. Johnstone in their last home game in the playoffs. In thier last five matches, they have scored nine goals and conceded three.

Inverness CT 2-1 Kilmarnock 15/04/22

Inverness CT 4-0 Hamilton Academical 29/04/22

Inverness CT 1-0 Partick Thistle 06/05/22

Inverness CT 0-0 Arbroath 10/05/22

Inverness CT 2-2 St. Johnstone 20/05/22

Inverness Caledonian Thistle latest away form

Inverness have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having lost just one of their six most recent matches. They defeated Arbroath through penalties after a 0-0 draw in their last away game. In their last five matches, they have scored six goals and conceded five.

Ayr United 2-2 Inverness CT 09/04/22

Queens of the South 2-1 Inverness CT 19/04/22

Greenock Morton 0-1 Inverness CT 23/04/22

Partick Thistle 1-2 Inverness CT 03/05/22

Arbroath 0-0(P) Inverness CT 13/05/22

St. Johnstone news

St. Johnstone will again be without Chris Kane, Tony Gallacher, Craig Bryson and David Wotherspoon through injury.

Callum Hendry and Glen Middleton are set to feature in the final third of the field, which means that Steven May will likely have to settle for spot on the bench once again.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle news

Dodds made two halftime changes in the first leg, with Logan Chalmers and Austin Samuels both being introduced, and the pair could now come into the starting lineup.

Reece McAlear will play in midfield once again, while Billy McKay will retain his position in the final third of the field.

Prediction and Odds

Inverness gave themselves a fighting chance ahead of the second leg, but it could be difficult to back them for a win here.

St. Johnstone superior quality should ultimately shine through and now that they are playing at home, we predict they will win and play in the Scottish Premiership next season.

Odds: 1 1.89 X 2.10 2 2.50