FC Thun coach Gian-Luca Privitelli has identified Claudio Braga and Josh McPake as two of Hearts' most dangerous players ahead of their Conference League meeting at the Visana Stadium on Thursday evening.
The Swiss side are looking to secure their first points in the competition against the Edinburgh club, and Privitelli believes Hearts' main strength lies in attack, with Braga supported by wingers McPake and Calvin Miller.
Miller is expected to miss the match through injury, with Sabah Kerjota likely to step in as his replacement.
Privitelli's Assessment of Hearts
Privitelli has studied Hearts extensively and is expecting a demanding contest against a side he describes as a modern, well-organised team.
"It's going to be a very tough game. I have the impression that our opponents are a very good, modern-style team with very good moves," he said.
"They have excellent wingers and strikers. We think the two wingers and the strikers are good players. In midfield, they use the ball well. There are four or five players we studied a bit more, but it's about the whole team and the style. We are ready with our style to bring a good challenge."
Privitelli also noted the intensity Hearts bring to their play, adding: "They play a good pressing game and they are very intense in the duels. In a nutshell, they really show their Scottish blood, so it's going to be a challenge."
His preparation has included reviewing Hearts' recent fixtures, as he explained: "My analyst had one contact, I think. We saw the games against Hibs, Rangers and Trabzonspor. We saw all the games. A few new players will come in and we won't know them so much because there will be some players with not a lot of minutes. Not all the games were the same but we prepared from this."
Injury Concerns for Both Sides
Hearts' squad is stretched thin, but Thun have their own fitness problems. Fabio Saiz, Genis Montolio and Mats Seiler are all ruled out, while Louis Passavant is a doubt.
Privitelli confirmed that Hearts' injury list does not alter his approach. "Knowing Hearts have more injured players doesn't change our game plan. You also have injured players but, on our side, it's not a big change," he said.
"We have some long-term injured players, including one new injury, but we need to focus on our strengths and we won't change our game plan."
The Thun coach stressed the importance of taking all three points, stating: "Every game is a must-win game, whether it is the league or the Conference League. That's how it is but we focus on our performance. We did well in the last two games and we are looking forward. We want to get three points here at home to help us in the Conference League."
Home Advantage and Defensive Focus
More than 1,000 Hearts supporters are expected to travel to Thun for the match, but Privitelli is confident the atmosphere will not unsettle his team, having already faced hostile crowds against Hajduk Split and Dinamo Zagreb in recent European games.
"We had a home game against Hajduk so we were good to play at home against almost half of the stadium. There will be less fans than Hajduk and Dinamo Zagreb so we will be ready. That's no problem," he said.
Thun captain Marko Burki is among the defenders tasked with keeping Braga quiet. The experienced centre-back acknowledged the challenge ahead.
"We saw some images on how they are going to play and the style and what they try to do," he said. "We are going to bring our game on the pitch and we will see who has the better game plan or mentality. We know they have qualities, this is an international game but we are in the Conference League and want to win the game. We don't play to be here, we play to win."
Both teams have struggled to keep clean sheets recently, but Burki is determined to change that trend against Hearts. He joked: "Hopefully not. I'm a central defender so I want to keep zero goals. We have to improve in this part. We did not bad in two Conference League games so we need to keep that going. We can score so the most important is a clean sheet."
