Heart of Midlothian

Samuel Ukah
BBC Sport Scotland

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After six weeks out with a calf injury, Stuart Findlay is set to return to the Hearts squad to face Motherwell this Saturday.

The Steelmen remain the only team the Scottish Premiership leaders are yet to beat in the league this season, but Findlay says his side are embracing the pressure, despite people waiting for them to slip up in the title race.

"A lot of people out there are waiting for perhaps a trip up. I mean, it's impossible to say we're drowning out the outside noise," he said.

"We understand that, that's just the nature of where we are in the league, but we've got such a good changing room, such a good group, such a good inner circle where we are, that we all have faith in each other.

"We all have one goal, we're all singing from the same hymn sheet. The cliche we've stuck to for the first 32 games is each game as it comes.

"We're getting to the point where there's not much more of them to come, but we just have to keep doing what we've been doing and hopefully end a special season for us."

The SPFL announced on Tuesday that Hearts' post-split fixtures will conclude with a potential title decider at Celtic Park.

However, the returning centre-back downplayed the significance of the schedule, insisting no fanbase will ever be satisfied with the order of games.

"All six teams need to play each other. In the order that they do, nobody's ever going to be fully happy," he added. "It is what it is. We've got six fixtures, we'll take them as they come.

"There are pros and cons that you could say. If you had Celtic first game of the split, it's a really hard game to get the fixtures off and up and running.

"So, there's different ways you can spin every fixture. All we can do is go into each game as it comes and try and get a positive result."

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• Claudio Braga's 13 Scottish Premiership goals this season have been worth 12 points to Hearts, the most of any player for any side in the division this term. However, only four of those 13 strikes have come at home (30.8%).

• Motherwell have lost three of their last four league games (D1), as many as their first 28 of the season beforehand (W14 D11 L3). They have conceded as many goals in these last four league matches as they did in their prior 21 beforehand (eight).

• Hearts have won each of their last four home league games by the same 1-0 scoreline; it's the first time any Scottish top-flight side has had four successive home league matches end in the exact same score since Aberdeen had four straight 0-0 draws from May to September 2012, while no side has had five consecutive identical home results in the division in the 21st century.

• Motherwell have won just one of their last nine league visits to Hearts (D2 L6), a 1-0 victory in September 2023 under Stuart Kettlewell.

• Hearts are unbeaten in five league meetings with Motherwell (W2 D3), keeping four clean sheets. It's their longest such unbeaten run against the Steelmen since going eight without defeat from April 2005 to September 2007.

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Hearts midfielder Marc Leonard will be suspended for Saturday's home game with Motherwell after his red card away to Livingston was upheld by a Scottish FA fast-track panel.

The 24-year-old, on loan from Birmingham City, was sent off in stoppage time of Sunday's 2-2 draw for a cynical pull on Robbie Muirhead near the halfway line to prevent the striker breaking clear.

Hearts appealed against the decision but those at the tribunal hearing agreed referee Kevin Clancy was correct to send the player off.

Earlier on Wednesday, Hearts head coach Derek McInnes said the incident was not a "clear and obvious opportunity" for Livingston to grab a last-gasp winner.

"The Livingston player is in his own half, there is a long way to go," he said.

"Jamie McCart's actually got a bit of a head of steam in the same channel and the likelihood is he would get back before Robbie could get a clean shot on goal.

"But also for me, even more pivotal is Jordi Altena's position, he is cutting across on the angle, I'm almost hundred percent certain that Robbie is not going to have the speed or the capability to get straight in on your goal without having to beat one of our players.

"And, for me, that then eradicates the clear and obvious opportunity, and it's not to say it's not still a chance for Livingston, I get that, but he's not going to get a clean run in on goal."

Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Hearts head coach Derek McInnes has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Scottish Premiership match against Motherwell at Tynecastle (15:00 BST).

Here are the key lines:

• Hearts will appeal the red card shown to midfielder Marc Leonard for denying a goalscoring opportunity in Sunday's draw at Livingston.

• McInnes feels there was enough time for at least one Hearts player to get back and cover before Livingston striker Robbie Muirhead would have been in a position to shoot.

• "I'm almost 100% certain that he's not going to have the speed or the capability to get straight in on our goal without having to beat one of our players," he says. "And for me that then eradicates the clear and obvious opportunity."

• McInnes says Hearts' post-split fixtures, which conclude with a final-day trip to Celtic Park, are "what they had anticipated". He feels for the fans who will not be able to attend and also sympathises with supporters because of the various different kick-off times across the schedule, including the 17:30 BST start time against Rangers on Monday, 4 May.

• On Hearts' final five matches, McInnes adds: "I know there's been a lot of narrative and comment about the team who normally goes into the split with the most points being at home on the last game of the season and that hasn't been the case this time. I get how not everybody's going to be happy, and I think the league have got a tough job to try and keep every club happy and every set of supporters happy, but for us we're just excited about the games that are coming up."

• McInnes says that he would be happy to play the matches "in a car park" and he does "not want to get too caught up" on some of the discourse that has followed Tuesday's fixtures announcement.

• On his team news, McInnes revealed centre-back Stuart Findlay will return for the visit of Motherwell and left-back Harry Milne is back running and will be assessed before the game. Meanwhile, Tomas Magnusson could miss the rest of the season with a thigh strain, but the club are seeking a second opinion on the midfielder's injury.

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Stephen Kingsley has urged Hearts to look at the positives after their draw at Livingston, and focus on the challenges ahead as they look to land the Premiership title.

The team travelled to Almondvale on Sunday in the hopes of another vital three points but were held to a 2-2 draw by the Premiership's bottom side.

The disappointing result left the team just one point ahead of Rangers and three ahead of Celtic, with a home match against Motherwell next weekend, their last before the split.

Kingsley acknowledged that the result was a setback but urged everyone to look at the team's position and how they now had six games to make history.

"We are top of the league, we are still there and we know that if we win on Saturday, we will go into the split top of the league," he said.

"Sometimes you just need to think if someone had told you that seven or eight months ago... It's an incredible place to be.

"We have now got to react to a few disappointing moments and make sure we're bang at it for Saturday.

"You can't say anything other than the next six games are massive for us.

"It's up to us to go and get a result against Motherwell and go into the split hopefully [at least] a point ahead.

"What an opportunity it is. We just want to be there and take this opportunity. We have to make the most of it. That's our mentality."

Kingsley insists there's no concern over all the team's remaining fixtures being against top six sides, saying their form has been strong in those games, and dismissed any talk of pressure starting to affect the team.

"I feel like people will put it down to nerves and tension, but it's not realistic thinking us, Rangers and Celtic will go the rest of the season and not drop points," he said.

"The full season has shown that teams will drop points. It's how you react - and we've done that very well this season. Whenever we've dropped points, we have always bounced back.

"Saturday is another chance to do that and, if we do that, we'll put ourselves in a great position going into the split."

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

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The headline news from the Scottish Premiership's post-split fixtures was undoubtedly that league leaders Hearts will go to Celtic Park on the final day of the league season.

Hearts supporters will be frustrated - understandably - not to have the chance to seal what would be a historic title win at Tynecastle. Instead, there will be a tiny pocket of away fans present to witness what would be one of the greatest achievements in Scottish football history.

Yes, Hearts could have won it before then, but given the incredible twists and turns we have seen throughout this campaign, it feels inevitable it will go to the wire on 16 May.

On that date 28 years ago, Hearts went to Celtic Park and won silverware, beating Rangers 2-1 in the Scottish Cup final with Hampden Park being renovated.

They have other good memories in Glasgow's east end - more recent ones too - from their 2-1 win at Parkhead earlier this season.

And the way the fixtures have landed give Derek McInnes' side the chance to seize the initiative in the run-in.

Beat Motherwell at home on Saturday and they go into the final five matches clear at the top.

They then play two of their three hardest matches on paper back-to-back - away to Edinburgh rivals Hibernian before welcoming their nearest challengers Rangers to Gorgie.

Win those and history beckons - a first title since 1960 could be won at Parkhead.

Greg Playfair
Fan writer

Hearts dropping two points to bottom of the league Livingston is, frankly, the most Hearts thing imaginable.

Last week, I joked that televised games feel cursed and heading to West Lothian, it didn't feel like a joke.

Since the win against nine-man Dundee United on January 31, we've taken nothing from trips to St Mirren, Rangers and Kilmarnock. At Tynecastle, we've picked up four straight wins, but every one of them was 1–0, and none of them were comfortable.

I'm not going into full meltdown like some Jambos have been since Sunday. I'm not questioning Derek McInnes' long-term future, and I'm not blaming the half-time tea and biscuits. We need a reality check.

Six games to go, we're top by a point. The title is in our hands. No favours needed - just win more points than everyone else between now and the finish line.

Honestly, I never thought we'd see anyone outside Celtic or Rangers lift the Premiership in my lifetime. Yet here we are, right on the cusp of it.

So, this is the moment for unity. Get behind the team. Once fans start on the players - or the manager - it helps nobody, especially in a title run-in.

We can do the end-of-season judgment after match 38. If this ends the way we're dreaming, Gorgie's going to throw its best summer party in 66 years.

That said, constructive criticism is fair. And the one area that keeps coming up is McInnes' in-game management.

To be fair, he's nailed some big moments. Dundee away with 10 men? We basically went 5-4-0 and ground out the 1-0. St Mirren the week after, down to 10 again? He stayed brave with 4-2-3 shape, and we found a way.

Those are the kind of points you look back on in May and realise they were massive.

But in the games where we've dropped points, it's fair to ask if we've helped cause our own problems. At Ibrox, shifting Claudio Braga from up top to out wide at half time after he'd given their centre-backs a torrid first half was a proper head-scratcher.

Same story with the minutes. Rogers Mato and Sabah Kerjota barely get a look-in, even while Alexandros Kyziridis' form has dipped and teams seem to have worked out how to handle him.

And then there's the sight of Craig Halkett being thrown on as an emergency forward late in games while Elton Kabangu - one of our top scorers last season - sits in footballing Siberia.

McInnes has said Jamestown Analytics is behind the tendency to make subs late. Fine, but the 89th-minute double change of bringing on Blair Spittal and Beni Baningime isn't a plan, it's a hope. You're lucky if they even touch the ball.

He proved he can trust his instincts when he overruled the data to sign Stuart Findlay, and it's been a success. I want to see that same 'manager' energy with substitutions: earlier, braver, based on what's happening in front of him.

Now Motherwell on Saturday and I'll be honest, I'm not confidently banking three points.

I'll get stick for that, but decades of watching Hearts has taught me one thing: we love giving a confidence boost to a team that badly needs one. Motherwell are winless in four, so I'm fully expecting them to turn up playing like 2010 Spain.

Don't get me wrong, I'll be at Tynecastle at 15:00, getting behind the team and willing us to put them to the sword. But Motherwell have been our bogey side this season, and we'll need to be right at it to get the win.

I still believe we can win this league. Celtic and Rangers will drop points somewhere in their last six, so we can't let Saturday turn into an 'all or nothing' panic test in our heads.

I've no idea exactly how McInnes sets us up but I do know this - 19,000 Jambos will make Tynecastle bounce from the first kick. Start fast, make the changes when the game tells you to, and get us over the line.

Key Hearts centre-back Stuart Findlay is likely to return on Saturday following six weeks out with a calf injury. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish Gossip in full

Lawrence Shankland has to be Scotland's starting striker at the World Cup this summer, says former Hearts midfielder Andy Halliday.

The Hearts captain started his first match since January for the Scottish Premiership leaders against Livingston on Sunday, scoring and assisting in the 2-2 draw.

The 30-year-old has now netted 16 times in all competitions this season and has provided another five assists for Derek McInnes' men.

Despite scoring in the astonishing 4-2 win over Denmark in November, which booked Scotland's place at this summer's finals, Shankland has struggled to nail down a starting spot in Steve Clarke's side.

Just four of his 18 caps have been starts, but he has scored on four occasions, and Halliday feels his former team-mate has demonstrated why he deserves to be Clarke's first-choice centre-forward.

"I think he's the best striker at our disposal," Motherwell midfielder Halliday said on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast. "I think he's the best finisher out of the group of strikers we've got.

"Going into three World Cup games where I don't expect us to have loads of chances every single game - the past two friendlies probably proved that - I think if a chance is going to fall to anyone, you're hoping it's Lawrence Shankland.

"He comes on in the game against Denmark, makes an immediate impact. That type of goal, as simple as it is, it's a two-yard tap-in.

"That's what Lawrence Shankland is: he's someone who thrives off playing in between the posts. For me, it's not fortune when you see strikers that land on these types of chances all the time.

"I thought he should have been the starting striker going into the Euros in 2024. I'm hoping we've almost learned a lesson from that not being the case."

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

GK: Raphael Sallinger (Hibernian)

Almost seems to get in by default at the moment because of another weekend lacking any outstanding goalkeeping performances. A couple of saves and a clean sheets means the Austrian gets the gloves again.

RB: Dujon Sterling (Rangers)

A solid performer at Ibrox and nabbed a goal in the vital 4-2 win over Dundee United.

CB: Luke Graham (Dundee)

A colossus at the back for the Dark Blues all afternoon. Unfortunate to be on the losing side.

CB: Alex Gogic (St Mirren)

Seldom a weekend goes by when this team of the week favourite doesn't find his way into the starting XI. His brilliant headed goal against Aberdeen and a clean sheet earns him another call-up.

LB: Jordan Obita (Hibernian)

Set up the goal for Felix Passlack after Owen Elding's pass unlocked the Kilmarnock defence. An effective presence down the Hibs left.

CM: Felix Passlack (Hibernian)

Another big goal for the former Borussia Dortmund man. The German has a knack for arriving in the box at just the right time.

CM: Stevie May (Livingston)

Once upon a time had the flowing locks and the killer touch of a goal machine number nine in his glorious St Johnstone era. These days he has refashioned himself into one of Livingston's most versatile players.

Age and injuries take their toll on all players but his precision finish and general clever play were fundamental for Livingston in their draw with Hearts.

FW: Owen Elding (Hibernian)

What a prospect he looks for Hibs. The 20-year-old who arrived from Sligo Rovers opened the scoring after 13 seconds against Kilmarnock and his pass to unlock the Killie defence for the Passlack goal was a measured thing of beauty.

FW: Lawrence Shankland (Hearts)

Powered in his headed goal and looked the part all afternoon against Livingston. Full of invention, poise and confidence. But, crucially, it's his killer instinct in the box that counts most.

With the national team struggling for goals, will he be Scotland's go-to man for the World Cup opener against Haiti?

FW: Claudio Braga (Hearts)

Player of the season? A joy to watch, every part of his game looks great right now. Never a doubt the goal would be scored when the chance came his way.

Could the partnership with Shankland be the key ingredient that gets the Hearts title tilt over the line? Earns extra points for me for his desire to stay on his feet in the box rather than look for a penalty.

FW: Calvin Miller (Falkirk)

A contender for the Scotland squad? The national team could do with a creative winger with pace and Calvin Miller has been providing that all season in the Premiership for Falkirk.

The stats add up as well, seven goals and 10 assists in all competitions.

We asked for your views on Hearts' potentially damaging Scottish Premiership draw at bottom side Livingston on Sunday.

Here's what some of you had to say:

Marc: We're still top of the league with six games to go. Every single Hearts fan would be happy with that position at the start of the season. Let's not look back but forward and ensure we win our home games. Silly goals to concede at Livi but we move on with a point and stay positive.

Peter: We saw the benefit of having Lawrence Shankland and Cammy Devlin back in the quality of our attacking performance, but we shot ourselves in the foot twice and this is happening too often recently. Felt that Craig Halkett looked slow and untypically unsure of himself, while the defence did not gel properly at any point in the game.

Andy: Definitely feels like two points dropped and not one gained. We lost two soft goals against Livi and will need to be much more clinical defensively for the run-in. Still top of the league, though!

Patrick: No intensity and most attacks ending with the ball being passed backwards shows the players are not confident in winning games, let alone a league. We are set up to win by one goal and when that doesn't work we fall apart. We might not win another game this season.

Alison: McInnes will tell you how we are overachieving and still one point clear and other teams have more money, blah, blah, blah - we chucked it and the ball was in his hands when it was fumbled. Too many games with poor management decisions and horrible tactics will see us finish third.

Larry: The team's chucked it. Poor game management. Poor individual performances. Too many excuses. Not good enough. Monumental bottle job from McInnes, his tactics and line-ups have taken a thriving team into a shell of who they were.

Watch Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts drop two precious points in a thrilling draw at bottom side Livingston.

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Hearts inched back to the top of the Scottish Premiership but could only muster a disappointing draw against the league's bottom dwellers Livingston.

Read the full match report here.

Let us know your thoughts here.

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Hearts head coach Derek McInnes: "I'm more disappointed with anybody. We'd done so much to get ourselves in front, and we needed to enjoy being in front a bit more.

"We felt the goal was coming. When we were good, we were very good, we were polished, connected well, looked after it well. At times, we looked like a team at the top of the league.

"But there were too many moments where we were sloppy, anxious in our defending, the gaps were too big between us.

"Livingston set up in a counter attacking shape, they're all about transitions. The second goal is a ridiculous goal to lose and we're disappointed with that.

"We can't keep pulling ourselves off the canvas. With half an hour to go, I wanted us to carry a but more of a threat. We've got to remember we're up against a team who are bottom of the league with something to hang on to.

"We needed to hammer home that authority and we missed the opportunity to stay in charge of the game. Psychologically, in terms of giving away a goal, was we gave them a boost.

"Both goals were so poor to lose, not the type we ordinarily lose. Our combination play was good, we had plenty possession and shots, but behind all that, there was too many wee moments where we guilty of giving up good opportunities.

"Individually, we were a wee bit off it with some of our defensive work. That's not just the back lost. In the first goal, the press wasn't right from the front.

"We go a point clear with six games to go. People need to remember that, I'm trying to keep myself in check with that. It's a missed opportunity today.

"We have to be honest and say a point is all we deserved, and it might be a really important point come the end of the season, so we're not going to get too hung up on it."

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Hearts striker Claudio Braga reveals Portugal FA officials have reached out to his representatives to let them know they are monitoring his form with the Tynecastle club. (Scottish Sun), external

Barrie McKay says he still doesn't know why he was frozen out at Hearts by Neil Critchley as the Livingston winger prepares to face his old club. (Daily Record), external

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Hearts boss Derek McInnes says no other side in Europe are defying expectations the way his team are.

The Tynecastle club - bidding to end four decades of Old Firm title dominance - are two points clear at the top of the Premiership with just seven games to play.

And while McInnes thinks there are other teams in the division overachieving, nobody is doing it quite like Hearts.

"Listen, there's three teams in the league who have overachieved this season - "Falkirk, Motherwell and ourselves," the 54-year-old said.

"You couldn't say that about everybody, but I think us three are probably ahead of where we thought we could have been this season.

"We've now been elevated into a position that probably nobody thought we could be at this stage of the season.

"I think when you look across Europe, across the world, for a team to have the disparity in wages and spending power as against the other two [Celtic and Rangers], it's so unusual.

"We're probably the only team that could be top of the league for so long and certainly top of the league with so few games to go.

"There's teams who have spent a lot more, with a lot more expectation on them in our league who should be at the top of the league, but they're not.

"We're there, we're enjoying it and we just need to try and keep maintaining our good work for the rest of the campaign."