Hearts, reeling from missing out on a Scottish Premiership top-six finish on the final day of the regular season, will get their post-split campaign underway on Saturday when they face relegation-threatened Dundee.
The hosts finished seventh in the league standings, just a point outside the top six, while the visitors occupy the relegation playoff spot in the top flight.
Match preview
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Hearts endured a challenging start to the 2024-25 season, failing to win any of their opening 10 fixtures across all competitions, a run that led to the dismissal of Steven Naismith.
The Jambos eventually appointed Neil Critchley as his successor, and after a brief upturn in form, their struggles continued, with Hearts sitting 11th in the league table on matchday 23.
However, a strong end to the campaign saw the Jambos put themselves back in contention for a top-six finish, with Critchley's side sat sixth in the table before the final day of the regular season.
The Jambos went into the final day needing a victory to ensure their top six finish, due to suffering two defeats in the prior games, but they were held to a 0-0 draw with Motherwell, allowing for St Mirren to snatch their place.
As a result, Hearts will compete in the relegation round of the top flight, but with a six point gap to 11th-placed Dundee, their safety in the Scottish Premiership is likely.
The opposite can be said for their opponents, who are staring at a potential relegation playoff match if they cannot move out of 11th by the end of the upcoming five post-split fixtures.
Dundee have won only nine, drawn seven and lost 17 of their 33 league fixtures thus far, marking a lacklustre campaign after the Dee placed sixth in the top flight last term.
Tony Docherty's side did show signs of improvement in the closing matches of the regular season, recording two wins in their last four, and they will be looking to build on that momentum as they aim to secure safety.
The Dee are just one point behind both 10th-placed Ross County and ninth-placed Kilmarnock, and with those two set to matchup on Saturday, a victory would see them move out of the bottom two.
Team News
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Hearts will be unable to call upon talented youngster James Wilson for Saturday's clash due to a red card he picked up against Dundee Utd at the beginning of the month, while Gerald Taylor is also ruled out with an injury.
Adam Forrester and Lawrence Shankland are both doubts after coming off with injuries in the 2-1 defeat to Aberdeen in the Scottish FA Cup semi-final, but the pair should be fit to start.
Elsewhere, Elton Kabangu should partner Musa Drammeh in attack, while a midfield three of Cameron Devlin, Beni Baningime and Jorge Grant is likely to be named.
As for the visitors, Lyall Cameron and Scott Fraser are set to continue on the sidelines with ongoing injury issues, while the rest of the squad is expected to be available for selection.
Dundee suffered a dismal 4-0 defeat on the final day of the league season, meaning Docherty could make changes here, including Sebastian Palmer-Houlden and Ethan Ingram coming into the starting side.
Hearts possible starting lineup:
Gordon; Forrester, Steinwender, McCart, Penrice; Devlin, Baningime, Grant; Shankland; Drammeh, Kabangu
Dundee possible starting lineup:
Carson; Ingram, Shaughnessy, Robertson, Larkeche; Mulligan, Sylla, Robertson; Adewumi, Murray, Palmer-Houlden
We say: Hearts 3-1 Dundee
Hearts may be disheartened after missing out on the top six, but the hosts are certainly the stronger of the two, and we expect them to secure a commanding victory here.
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Ellis Stevens
