The SPFL season rumbles into its third round of fixtures this weekend.

Here we look at the key talking points to look out for: Armstrong's new deal, referees under the spotlight, Tavernier's goal touch and Inverness' Championship struggles.

As contract talks stalled, Stuart Armstrong found himself out of the Celtic starting 11.

Having committed his future to the Scottish champions, the 25-year-old will now be expecting to reclaim his spot in the side after a stellar 2016/2017 campaign.

Celtic's midfield looked impressive even without the Scotland international on Wednesday, however, with new signing Olivier Ntcham receiving widespread acclaim for his performance against Astana.

A longer term battle may await Armstrong as he looks to nail down a consistent starting berth once again.

In the immediate future competition will be less fierce.

A head injury sustained by Aussie playmaker Tom Rogic in the Astana clash makes it more than likely Armstrong will return to Rodgers' line-up this weekend.

There were cards galore last weekend in the Premiership as six reds were dished out.

Four were appealed, three of which were successful. Rangers midfielder Ryan Jack's dismissal against Hibs, Hearts forward Isma Goncalves' sending off at Kilmarnock and Motherwell defender Charles Dunne's at St Johnstone were overturned at hearings on Thursday.

It means referees will be under scrutiny this time around whenever they dive into their pockets.

Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha, for one, isn not taking any chances and has been training his players to deal with poor refereeing decisions.

In his first season at Rangers, James Tavernier contributed 15 goals to the Ibrox cause from right-back.

The goals dried up last campaign, though, as confidence and form disappeared, with the Englishman only scoring twice.

Strikes against Dunfermline and Hibs mean he has already matched that number this time out.

Tavernier points to a more fluid approach under Pedro Caixinha and a move to a wing-back role as to why he is now finding the back of the net on a more regular basis.

The SPFL has started in curious fashion, with no draws from the first 12 fixtures.

Four sides sit on six points from six, with another four pointless.

Gaps can quickly appear and with three of four sides languishing on zero points taking on the league's table-toppers it is a weekend where the table could begin to take shape.

Bottom of the table Dundee travel to Pittodrie, Kilmarnock host Celtic in the early kick off, while Partick Thistle head to St Johnstone.

All three will be looking to put an end to their opponents 100% starts and claw their way up the table.

An opening day defeat to Dundee United hinted at the challenge facing Inverness as they fight to return to the Premiership but a 5-1 thumping off Dunfermline last weekend made it abundantly clear just how tough it will be for John Robertson's side to bounce straight back up.

This weekend Caley Thistle host Jim Duffy's Morton, a side still basking in a 4-1 Renfrewshire Derby win over St Mirren and know three points are much needed to kick-start their faltering campaign.

The Championship is a league packed full of quality this season, with Dundee United, Dunfermline and Morton all started strongly.

With 12 new additions to his side, John Robertson knows his side have to start putting points on the board before the leaders head off into the distance.