A victory at any cost is the one thing that must be in Hearts minds when taking on RFS this Thursday, according to manager Robbie Neilson.
Three points against the Latvian side they beat away from home earlier in Europa Conference League Group A are needed if they are to hold any hopes of making the competition's knockout stages. But it could be over by the time they kick-off at Tynecastle, as a Fiorentina win over section leaders Istanbul Basaksehir would put them in an uncatchable second spot position.
That match in Turkey begins at 17:45 UK time, meaning those at Hearts will know their fate by the time the players take to the pitch at 20:00. But Neilson says all focus must be on what they do instead of others: "We’re not really thinking that far ahead, to be honest with you. Where we go from here will depend on what happens in the other games.
READ MORE: Hearts vs RFS on TV: Channel, kick-off time and live stream details for Europa Conference clash
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"We have to win to give ourselves some sort of chance. It’s interesting, when you watch their (RFS’s) away games recently away to Fiorentina and Istanbul; they really sat in and defended.
"Tomorrow night will be a lot different because they need a result if they’re hoping to qualify. They play different styles, so we’ll see whether they change their system to reflect how they might play at home. We’ll wait and see.
“Of course, recently we’ve played well in periods of matches. The disappointing thing is that we haven’t picked up any points. We all know that these are good players though, and I know that they’re displaying good performance levels.”
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