Hearts vs St. Johnstone

The two sides that are currently occupying the respective relegation positions of the Scottish Premiership will be in action this Sunday as Hearts host St Johnstone at Tynecastle Park.

Currently the hosts are in the last position with only 13 points in 17 games, however the visitors are only one position higher with 14 points in their 17 games.

The Edinburg side has been able to establish itself as the best-second best team in Scotland after earning the promotion from the second division in the 2020-21 season and now they are on the brink of facing relegation.

The Jambos placed third in both the 2021-22 and the 2023-24 seasons as well as coming fourth in the 2022-23 season; however, the team currently resides in last place of the Scottish Premiership season this year.

Hearts were knocked out of the Europa League while in the domestic league, they only managed one draw and eight losses in a terrifying first nine fixtures under Steven Naismith.

It took the new manager Neil Critchley to bring out the best in the Hearts team after they recorded one win, one draw and one loss at the instance of interim boss Liam Fox.

The former Blackpool boss began his tenure on the right note with victories over St Mirren and Omonia Nicosia and Critchley now has 4 wins, 3 draws, and seven losses in 14 games.

Those standings put the Jambos only two points away from the relegation zone, while a win today would leave them anywhere between the 8th to the 9th position depending on other matches, and given the Hearts performance this fixture has seen them register seven straight wins over St Johnstone prior to this clash.

The visitors, on the other hand, have been in the relegation playoffs for the past three seasons, ending just above the drop zone on goal differential after finishing 11th in 2021–22, ninth in 2022–23, and 10th in 2023–24.

With the Saints currently placed 17th in the table with just 14 points from 17 games—four wins, two draws, and eleven losses—Simo Valakari's team is once again in a position to compete for a longer stay in the top flight this season.

St Johnstone won back-to-back games against Ross County and Dundee in October after losing six of their first eight league games, with one victory and one draw. They only won one of their next seven games, but they have improved significantly in those games.

With the exception of a 3-1 loss to St Mirren, the Saints have lost all five of their games during that span by a single goal. In four of those five losses, they have also had greater possession.

For the first time since February 2022, St Johnstone will try to defeat Hearts in order to turn that control into wins and move up the league and out of the drop zone.
Critchley will be hoping that a front-two of Lawrence Shankland and James Wilson can regain their goal-scoring form here since the Jambos have struggled for goals in the Scottish Premiership this season, with only Ross County (13) netting fewer than their total of 18.

Valakari may choose to start the same team here despite the Saints' shocking 3-2 loss to St Mirren last time out, in which they gave up two goals in the closing minutes to blow a 2-1 lead.

St Johnstone will be hoping that Benjamin Mbunga-Kimpioka's scoring streak continues here after he overcame his five-game goal drought in that encounter, bringing his season total to 11 goals across all competitions.