Hearts have told fans not to book up European travel in a hasty manner after their play-off draw was confirmed.
The Jambos have found out they will take on Linfield or FC Zurich in the Europa League this month as they bid to make group stage football. Matches are due to take place on August 18 and 25, with Hearts set to be playing away first. There remains a possibility though that the venues could be switched with the Edinburgh club playing at Tynecastle first.
Zurich will be forced to play 80km from their home ground at fellow Swiss club St Gallen if their home tie remains on August 18 as there Stadion Letzigrund is booked for a concert on the same evening. They are heavy favourites to progress against Northern Irish opposition, and Hearts said: “Remember folks, please don’t book travel/accommodation until match details - dates, locations, fixture order - are confirmed by UEFA."
READ MORE: Hearts Europa League playoff draw confirmed as Jambos discover first European opponents
Manager Robbie Neilson told club media of the draw: “Yeah, it’s a good draw for us. First and foremost, we have a derby coming up.
"It’s great that we have this European tie to look forward to, but we’ve got to take care of the derby first. It’s obviously a tight turnaround to prepare for this game.
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"That’s probably going to be the case right through until the World Cup, to be honest with you. Hence why we prepared during pre-season the way we did – Wednesdays and Saturdays and so on. The boys are ready."
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