Former Scotland forward James McFadden spent a season at the tail end of his career with St Johnstone and is delighted at their return to the Premiership.
“They have shown their professionalism with that performance tonight – and result,” he said.
“They will think they have earned it. Not just tonight but over a very impressive season.
“To be at the top of the table the whole season. To deal with the pressure that comes with that.
“People might look at it and say they probably have the biggest budget. But you still have to spend your money wisely and I think they’ve done that.
“You have to deal with expectation and get the right characters into the club, which they have done, and they had to deal with losing [striker Adama] Sidibeh, who was a main player for them, midway through the season.
“For a club of this size, they have seen success they probably never believed was possible – Scottish Cup twice, a League Cup, a double cup-winning season and European football.
“They have had a big following for those big games, but there’s then a drop off, but with Simo Valakari coming in, there has been a re-energising of the club, bringing a freshness, and Valakari deserves a whole load of credit for that.
“The fans will be looking forward to going up. Survival will be important, but it is not going to be about safety first.”
McFadden came across Valakari as a young player when the former Finland midfielder was with Motherwell.
“You saw the enthusiasm he had in abundance,” he recalled. “Sometimes that doesn’t transfer as a manager, but he has certainly captured the imagination of the fans here.
“He has made an impact with the players and they will fancy their chances in the Premiership next season.
“It has been a theme that teams have gone up and managed to keep the momentum, which is perhaps no surprise as they have been winning games.
“I’m not for a minute saying St Johnstone will be top six next season, but they have to look at the teams who have come before them and what they have managed to achieve.
“Playing the way the play, they want to be more attacking, they will be a great addition to the league.”
