We've always got a chance

The gaffer was manager back in the 2016/17 campaign when the Jambos came up against Infonet of Estonia and Birkirkara of Malta. Whilst Hearts fell short on that occasion, the manager is looking forward to a second crack at the whip.
 
“It was a long time ago; six or seven years,” he told the press in his pre-match media conference. “You learn a lot as you go along. We played Infonet and then went to Malta where we didn’t manage the game perhaps as well as we should. Another 250 plus games managing helps as well.
 
“We’re feeling good. Everyone’s travelled and present, with the exception of Beni Baningime who’s obviously long-term.
 
“We’ve tried to give the players the best opportunity possible to be ready for tomorrow night. You come here and there’s travel involved, the weather’s a wee bit different. We’ve got a few guys who have played European football consistently before, but we have a lot of young guys who haven’t – so it was crucial that we have them as much help as possible to be ready for tomorrow.
 
“Tomorrow’s going to be quite a long day for them; so we’ll go out for a walk and then we’ll relax for the rest of the day and try and keep them out of the sun. Make no mistake; we’re coming here to try and win the game.
 
“This is the Swiss champions – they have international players and we’re away from home. We’ve got a good group of players here, and we know that if we prepare the right way, we’ve always got a chance.”