Scottish Premiership basement dwellers St Johnstone are set to take on Hearts at Tynecastle Park on Wednesday evening in their penultimate league match.
The visitors are five points adrift of safety with only six points left to play for, while the hosts have already confirmed their survival in the top flight.
Match preview
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St Johnstone are running out of time to extend their current 16-year stay in the top flight, as Simo Valakari's side trail safety by five points with only two games of the season remaining.
The Saints have been anchored to the bottom of the Scottish Premiership table since matchday 18, with Valakari unable to improve St Johnstone's fortunes following Craig Levein's dismissal just five games into the league campaign.
St Johnstone have won nine, drawn five and lost 22 of their 36 fixtures, leaving them with just 32 points, three behind 11th-placed Ross County in the relegation playoff and five behind 10th-placed Dundee.
They did boost their survival hopes with a crucial 2-1 win against the Staggies in their last outing, and the Saints must build on that victory if they are to secure their safety.
St Johnstone have, however, failed to beat Hearts in their last nine encounters, suffering nine straight defeats since their most recent victory (a 2-1 win) in February 2022.
Hearts experienced an extremely underwhelming start to the 2024-25 season, failing to win any of their opening 10 fixtures across all competitions - a streak that included the dismissal of Steven Naismith.
Although Neil Critchley managed to improve their form and lead them into a battle for a top-six finish, the Jambos were heartbreakingly unable to qualify for the top half, with two defeats and a draw in their final three fixtures meaning they finished just one point behind sixth-placed St Mirren.
The Jambos continued that lacklustre run as they crashed out of the Scottish FA Cup in the semi-finals, losing 2-1 to Aberdeen after extra-time, and Critchley was then sacked following a 1-0 defeat to Dundee in the opening post-split fixture.
Liam Fox, in interim charge of the side, has led them to back-to-back victories, 3-1 against Ross County and 3-0 against Motherwell, lifting them to seventh in the table, and they will aim to continue that run with a win on Wednesday.
Team News
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Hearts are likely to remain without Gerald Taylor, as the loanee is expected to be sidelined with a knee injury that will keep him out until the end of the month, while Kenneth Vargas is also a doubt after coming off with an injury in their last game.
Following back-to-back victories, the hosts could field a similar starting 11 on Wednesday, with Lawrence Shankland likely to lead the attack after scoring five goals in his last three games.
As for the visitors, Bozo Mikulic, Drey Wright, Sam McClelland and Zach Mitchell are all ruled out for the foreseeable future due to ongoing injury issues.
St Johnstone recorded a potentially crucial 2-1 triumph in their latest fixture, meaning Valakari may decide to name an unchanged starting team in this one.
Hearts possible starting lineup:
Fulton; Forrester, Kent, Halkett, Penrice; Devlin, Baningime, Forrest; Dhanda, Shankland, Grant
St Johnstone possible starting lineup:
Fisher; Sprangler, Balodis, Douglas; Curtis, Holt, Watt, Steven; Ikpeazu, Sidibeh, McPake
We say: Hearts 3-1 St Johnstone
While St Johnstone will be boosted by their recent victory and highly motivated as they continue to fight for survival, the hosts are undoubtedly the stronger side, and we expect Hearts to secure a comfortable victory.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
