Hearts will look to get their Scottish Premiership title push back on track when they face Falkirk at Tynecastle on Wednesday night.
Derek McInnes’ men stumbled in their quest for top-flight glory after being held to a 1-1 draw away to Motherwell on Saturday evening.
Celtic capitalised on that slip-up by coming from behind to secure a 3-1 victory over Rangers on Sunday, moving to within two points of the league leaders.
However, Hearts remain masters of their own destiny, knowing that four points from their final two matches would seal a first Scottish title since 1960.
As for Falkirk, their already slim hopes of securing 5th place – and with it a potential route into European football – suffered a major blow after a 3-1 home defeat to Hibernian on Saturday.
Despite having little to play for beyond pride when they head to the capital this midweek, the Bairns are unlikely to ease off as they seek a strong finish to an impressive season.
How the bookies view it: Hearts to get back on track
Hearts remain the only team in this season’s Scottish Premiership yet to taste defeat at home, so it is hardly surprising they come into this crunch clash as firm 2/5 favourites with bet365.
Falkirk are as big as 13/2 to claim a Tynecastle triumph with bet365, while a share of the spoils is also considered unlikely at 10/3 with the same firm.
Head to head: History favours the hosts
Hearts have fared well in this fixture this season, having taken maximum points from each of the previous three Scottish Premiership meetings, two of which came at Tynecastle. That said, it is worth noting that Falkirk did eliminate Hearts from this season’s Scottish Cup at this venue on penalties following a 1-1 draw after extra time.
Players to watch: Shankland hot streak to continue?
Since his return from injury, Lawrence Shankland has netted four times in his last five Scottish Premiership outings. Backing the Hearts skipper to strike again on Wednesday night, combined with a home win, is priced at an attractive 4/5 with bet365.
Calvin Miller has registered two or more shots in 14 of Falkirk’s last 20 Scottish Premiership matches, making a repeat here look terrific value at 10/11 with bet365.
Predicted line-ups
Dropping points was not the only setback for Hearts on Saturday night, as they also lost Craig Halkett and Marc Leonard for the remainder of the season through injury. The pair join an already lengthy injury list at Tynecastle, which includes Ageu, Calem Nieuwenhof, Craig Gordon, Finlay Pollock, Oisin McEntee and Tomas Magnusson.
Filip Lissah and Leon McCann are expected to miss out after both were forced off during Falkirk’s defeat to Hibernian on Saturday. Scott Bain has also been absent in recent weeks through injury, while Lewis Neilson is ineligible to face his parent club.
Hearts: Schwolow; Steinwender, Kent, Findlay; Kyziridis, Devlin, Baningime, Kingsley; Shankland, Chesnokov; Braga
Falkirk: Hogarth; Allan, Donaldson, Henderson, Miller; Spencer, Tait; Broggio, Yeats, Ross; Stewart
Anything else catch the eye?
Both teams to score looks well worthy of support at 10/11 with bet365.
Falkirk are unlikely to come to Tynecastle and sit in, which should set the stage for an open and end-to-end contest.
Moreover, BTTS has landed in seven of the Bairns’ last eight Scottish Premiership matches, while the same selection would have also proven profitable in each of Hearts' last five top-flight fixtures.
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