The Full Scottish Team of the Season 2025-26
What with all of the twist and turns, with Hearts topping the Premiership table only to lose the title with, perhaps, the last kick of the ball, and Celtic ultimately pipping them with a run of several less-than-convincing results, selecting this season’s Best XI was hardly a straightforward affair. So here is Full Scottish All-Star team 2026, hand-selected by Brian P. Dunleavy
Goalkeeper
Alexander Schwolow, Hearts
The German made 31 appearances for the Edinburgh side during the league campaign that saw them concede the fewest goals (34) in the top flight. He had a solid team in front of him, of course, but he was steady between the sticks.
Left Back
Harry Milne, Hearts
Kieran Tierney may get more headlines, but across the season Milne played his role for Derek McInnes’ side.
Central Defender
Liam Scales, Celtic
Scales divides opinion among the Hoops support, but for our money, he consistently came up big in big moments, including his goal-line clearance in the Scottish Cup final.
Central Defender
Stuart Findlay, Hearts
Originally signed on loan, Hearts made Findlay’s deal permanent in January, and rightly so.
Right Back
Stephen O’Donnell, Motherwell
The Steelmen earned plaudits for their play this season and, while O’Donnell may not offer a lot of entertainment on the right-hand side, he remains an important part of the squad.
Midfielder
Arne Engels, Celtic
Our prediction in preseason that the Belgian would be the Premiership’s Player of the Year hasn’t aged well but his return to fitness in April arguably spurred the Hoops’ late-season run.
Midfielder
Benjamin Nygren, Celtic
The Swede is another player that divides Parkhead opinion, but what he lacks in work rate he makes up for in goal return, netting 21 across all competitions this season.
Winger
Elijah Just, Motherwell
The New Zealander was a revelation for Motherwell this term, often teaming with O’Donnell, to create nightmare scenarios for opposing defenders. He’ll likely be moving onward and upward this summer.
Winger
Daizen Maeda, Celtic
Yes, the Japanese internationalist was invisible for much of the 2025-26 campaign, but boy was he seen when it mattered most, scoring nine times in his team’s final seven fixtures. What a way to say goodbye, as he’s likely off this summer.
Forward
Youssef Chermiti, Rangers
Signed from Everton last summer, all Chermiti did was score 15 goals in 30 league appearances. Not a bad return in what was otherwise a gloomy season at Ibrox.
Forward
Lawrence Shankland, Hearts
The erstwhile skipper at Tynecastle (he signed for Rangers this week on a free), Shankland found the back of the net 20 times across all competitions, bringing his total to 88 over five seasons. For many in Gorgie, it will be tough to see him in another shirt next season.
