Celtic dominate Premiership best players study as Rangers Euro stars left in the shade

The boffins at Swiss research centre CIES Football Observatory have sorted the entire Scottish Premiership player database into 15 'technical profiles'.

And their findings detail just why Celtic are heading into the split in control of the title race.

Looking at 32 leagues in total, players have been "classified into 15 technical profiles and ranked according to their performance level with respect to both teammates and opponents, their playing time, as well as their team and league sporting strength".

For example, Real Madrid star Eder Militao's defensive abilities on the ground and in the air make him the world's best 'ground-to-air blocker'.

But Virgil van Dijk surpasses him as an 'air blocker filter man' because of his ability on the recovery and the fact he is rarely dribbled past.

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The best 'shooter creator' is Real Madrid's Karim Benzema due to his superb finishing and ability to create chances for others, while Robert Lewandowski gets the nod for best 'target man shooter' who has excellent shooting and aerial attacking qualities.

It sounds convoluted but actually is a handy way to break down the Scottish Premiership's best players this season using the hard data and across the 15 profiles,