Scottish side Hearts will hope to build momentum by winning their second consecutive game when they host German team Heidenheim in their third Conference League game of 2024-25 at Tynecastle Park on Thursday.
Hearts are sixth in the Conference League table with six points from a possible six and beat Omonia Nicosia 2-0 on October 24, while the visitors are ninth with six points from six and beat Pafos FC 1-0 on October 24.
Match preview
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The Scottish side have had a poor season so far given they are second last in 11th place in the Scottish Premiership with nine points from 12 matches, though they are only three points from automatic safety.
Boss Neil Critchley took charge of the club in the middle of October after Steven Naismith was sacked when he failed to pick up a single win in his side's first six league outings.
Since Critchley's appointment, the Scottish club have won three, drawn one and lost one of their five matches under the Englishman, scoring 10 goals and conceding four times.
Hearts were leading 2-0 against Omonia Nicosia after just 23 minutes thanks to goals from Alan Forrest and Blair Spittal, and the team were deserving winners given their opponents failed to create a single big chance.
The hosts have won two, drawn one and lost one of their four most recent home games and have also won three of their last four Conference League matches at Tynecastle Park.
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As for Heidenheim, while they began their league campaign in the Bundesliga with two wins, they have lost five, drawn one and won just one of their subsequent seven top-flight fixtures and are currently 12th in the table.
Frank Schmidt's side were also eliminated from the second round of the DFB-Pokal on October 30 when they lost 2-1 against Hertha Berlin.
Schmidt's team prevented Pafos from creating a single big chance against them, though fans may still be concerned that the German team faced 15 shots.
Heidenheim have lost four, drawn one and won just one of their last six games in all competitions, scoring four goals and conceding seven times in that period.
The visitors have also lost four and won two of their last six away games, although it should be noted they have prevailed in all four of their matches in the Europa League.
Team News
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Hearts will be unable to select defender Gerald Taylor until early January 2025 as a result of a knee injury, while midfielder Calem Nieuwenhof is not scheduled to return from a hamstring injury until the middle of this month.
Adam Forrester, Frankie Kent, Kye Rowles and Stephen Kingsley are likely to start in defence behind a midfield double pivot consisting of Malachi Boateng and Cameron Devlin.
Winger Yutaro Oda has also been ruled out, so expect Critchley to field a front two consisting of Blair Spittal and Lawrence Shankland.
Heidenheim will be without midfielder Julian Niehues until December, as well as midfielder Luka Janes until late November.
Elsewhere, midfielders Thomas Leon Keller and Lennard Maloney are not expected to be ready for Thursday's clash, so perhaps the visitors will start with Luca Kerber and Niklas Dorsch in a double pivot.
Marnon Busch, Patrick Mainka, Tim Siersleben and Norman Theuerkauf are almost certain to start in defence in front of goalkeeper Kevin Muller.
Hearts possible starting lineup:
Gordon; Forrester, Kent, Rowles, Kingsley; Vargas, Boateng, Devlin, Forrest; Shankland, Spittal
Heidenheim possible starting lineup:
Muller; Busch, Mainka, Siersleben, Theuerkauf; Kerber, Dorsch; Conteh, Beck, Honsak; Kaufmann
We say: Hearts 1-1 Heidenheim
Heidenheim have struggled for results in recent weeks, but they have a strong record in the Europa League, and they could come away from Tynecastle Park with a point.
Additionally, though Hearts have been in somewhat better form since Critchley's appointment, the visitors proved to be defensively resilient against Pafos, and it would not be surprising if they frustrated their hosts.
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Lewis Nolan
