Hearts will look to strengthen their position at the top of the Scottish Premiership table on Wednesday as they welcome out-of-form St Mirren to Tynecastle.
Hearts maintained their three-point lead over second-placed Rangers and six-point gap over third-placed Celtic on Sunday afternoon with a hard-fought 0-1 victory away at Dundee.
Claudio Braga’s first-half strike was enough to seal all three points despite goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow getting sent off at the stroke of half-time, thanks to a world-class save from veteran stopper Craig Gordon at the death.
That’s now five wins from their last six Premiership fixtures for Derek McInnes’s men, with their 1-0 win at home to rock-bottom Livingston the week before preserving their unbeaten league record at Tynecastle this season (W7-D3-L0).
St Mirren suffered a third loss on the bounce on Saturday, as they fell to a disappointing 0-2 loss at home to newly-promoted Falkirk.
Despite their League Cup success last month, Stephen Robinson’s men have now won just two and lost nine of their previous 14 Premiership outings (W2-D3-L9), leaving them in 10th position, just four points outside of the relegation playoff spot.
How the bookies view it: Jambos favourites
Hearts are favourites to claim their sixth win from their last seven Premiership matches, with bet365 pricing a home success at just 2/5.
Bet365 have St Mirren as 15/2 outsiders to put an end to their six-game winless run away from home in the Scottish top flight, whilst the draw is 16/5.
Head to head: Home an advantage for Hearts
St Mirren are unbeaten in their two meetings with Hearts this season, drawing 2-2 in Paisley in the Premiership at the end of October, as well as knocking them out in the second round of the League Cup on penalties.
However, the Gorgie outfit have won each of their last three matches against the Buddies at Tynecastle by an aggregate score of 9-1.
Players to watch: Braga to bag again?
Claudio Braga is already a fan favourite for Hearts following his move from Aalesund in the summer, with his winning goal at the weekend being his 12th across his 26 appearances league and cup for the Jambos this term.
The Portuguese attacker also scored the last time these two clubs faced each other in Paisley at the end of October, and the 21/20 on offer at bet365 for him to score again appeals to me.
Backed a player to find the net? Check our Goalscorer Betting guide to see how the markets work and where to find value.
Predicted line-ups:
Hearts will be missing Calem Nieuwenhof, Finlay Pollock and Ageu due to injury, whilst goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow is suspended following his red card at Dens Park on Sunday.
St Mirren have a mounting injury list, with Shamal George, Killian Phillips, Liam Donnelly, Mark O’Hara, Keanu Baccus and Jonah Ayunga all out, but Alex Gogic returns from suspension.
Hearts: Gordon, Steinwender, Halkett, Findlay, McCart, Baningime, Devlin, Braga, Magnusson, Kyzridis, Shankland
St Mirren: Mullen, Fraser, King, Freckleton, Gogic, McMenamin, Campbell, Taylor, John, Nlundulu, Mandron
Anything else catch the eye?
These two clubs arrive into this clash in contrasting form, and I’m expecting the league leaders to extend their lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership table to six points with a win in Gorgie on Wednesday night.
The Buddies have picked up a solitary point across their last six road trips in the Premiership (W0-D1-L5), shipping at least two goals in each of those six matches.
The Jambos have won 14 of their last 17 Premiership fixtures at Tynecastle against St Mirren (W14-D2-L1) – scoring two or more goals in 12 of those victories – and I’m backing that trend to continue in the capital on Wednesday night.
GambleAware