Preview: Hearts vs St Mirren - prediction, team news, lineups

Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts will aim to extend their lead at the top of the standings when they welcome struggling St Mirren to Tynecastle Park on Wednesday.

The Jambos are top of the table with a three point lead over second-placed Rangers, while the Saints are 10th with a four-point lead over the drop zone.

Match preview

Hearts have been enjoying a simply sensational debut campaign under Derek McInnes' management, currently sitting at the top of the Scottish Premiership table with 47 points from 21 fixtures.

The Jambos remained undefeated in their opening 12 league games, with nine wins and three draws, before eventually losing 1-0 to Aberdeen, marking the start of a worrying three-game winless run, with back-to-back draws immediately following.

However, Hearts have subsequently returned to form in their last six Scottish Premiership matches, winning five and losing only one, including particularly important victories over both Rangers and Celtic.

Looking to maintain and strengthen their lead at the top of the table, Hearts will be hoping to record their first win over St Mirren this season, having drawn each of their two encounters, including a disappointing penalty shootout loss in the Scottish League Cup second round.

The Jambos will draw confidence from their recent form, as well as their impressive record at home this term, having recorded seven wins and three draws from 10 league fixtures at Tynecastle Park - leaving them as the only Scottish Premiership side still yet to lose at home.

St Mirren also come into this match in a difficult moment, with the Saints having suffered three consecutive defeats in the Scottish Premiership.

Those losses marked the end of a particularly brilliant five-game unbeaten run for the Saints, which saw Stephen Robinson's side win three and draw two, including a phenomenal 3-1 win over Celtic in the Scottish League Cup final.

However, the Saints have been unable to achieve those types of performances on a consistent basis throughout the campaign, and as a result, they sit 10th in the table with just 18 points from four wins, six draws and 10 league defeats - leaving them only four points above the drop zone.

St Mirren do have two games in hand over 11th-placed Kilmarnock, meaning they could extend their lead over the relegation zone to 10 points, but that would require them to pick up three points on Wednesday night.

Hearts Scottish Premiership form:

W W L W W W

Hearts form (all competitions):

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St Mirren Scottish Premiership form:

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St Mirren form (all competitions):

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Team News

Hearts are without Calem Nieuwenhof, Ageu and Finlay Pollock for this match due to injury issues, while Alexander Schwolow is suspended after being sent off in the 1-0 win against Dundee at the weekend.

Craig Gordon replaced Schwolow in that match, going on to make a crucial last-minute save to secure the victory, and the veteran keeper will remain between the posts in this one.

The rest of the side that started that game is also expected to play, including a front four of Lawrence Shankland, Alexandros Kyziridis, Claudio Braga and Tomas Magnusson.

Meanwhile, Jonah Ayunga, Keanu Baccus, Killian Phillips, Liam Donnelly, Mark O'Hara and Shamal George are unavailable due to injury problems.

Allan Campbell, Jayden Richardson and Ryan Mullen are likely to come into the starting team due to the injury issues, while the rest of the team from recent weeks could remain the same.

Hearts possible starting lineup:

Gordon; Altena, Halkett, Findlay, McCart; Baningime, Devlin; Magnusson, Braga, Kyziridis; Shankland

St Mirren possible starting lineup:

Mullen; Fraser, King, Freckleton; Richardson, Campbell, McMenamin, Taylor, John; Mandron, N'Lundulu

We say: Hearts 3-1 St Mirren

Hearts are in fantastic form heading into this game, and with St Mirren losing all of their last three matches, we are expecting a comfortable win for the hosts.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.