Hearts have lost their last two Europa Conference League clashes but are still in a fantastic position to qualify for the knockout play-off round.
Consecutive defeats against FC Heidenheim and Cercle Brugge have halted the Jambos’ momentum in the competition.
But their earlier wins over Dinamo Minsk and Omonoia mean they remain on six points after four games.
And according to one publication, that stands Hearts in good stead to get out of the league phase and play Europa Conference League football after Christmas.
Hearts handed play-off round prediction
Football Rankings have projected that Hearts have a 90.8% chance of qualifying for February’s knockout play-off round.
The Jambos dropped to 17th after defeat to Cercle at the Jan Breydel Stadion on Thursday, but they are still inside the qualification zone.
Hearts need to finish at least 24th in the league phase table and one more point next time out would finish the job.
Football Rankings’ predictions also tell us that Hearts currently have a 24.4% chance of being seeded in the play-off round, which finishing between 9th and 16th would guarantee.
A win over Cercle would have boosted Hearts’ chances of qualification for the last 16 proper – but now they’ve been given a 2.3% chance of achieving that.
Who do Hearts play next?
Hearts will travel to FC Copenhagen on December 12 knowing that a point from that game will secure their progression to the play-off round.
If they lose for a third consecutive game in Europe, it would all come down to the Tynecastle clash against Moldovan minnows Petrocub on December 19.
Hearts will bank an extra £166k if they reach the knockout play-off round on top of between £302k and £651k for finishing between 9th and 24th.