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Hibs logo
Scottish Premiership | Gameweek 22
Feb 1, 2022 at 7.45pm UK
Easter Road
Hearts logo

Hibernian
0 - 0
Hearts


Stevenson (11'), Newell (58')
FT

Moore (12'), Halliday (17'), Devlin (45+1'), Woodburn (90+1')

Preview: Hibernian vs. Hearts - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Tuesday's Scottish Premiership clash between Hibernian and Hearts, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

The midweek action in the Scottish Premiership includes the Edinburgh derby between Hibernian and Hearts at Easter Road on Tuesday evening.

The great rivals in Scotland head into their clash just two places apart in the table, but with the visitors boasting a 12-point gap over their hosts.


Match preview

Hibernian's Paul Hanlon celebrates scoring their first goal with Jamie Murphy on December 19, 2021© Reuters

Saturday's 3-2 defeat at home to Livingston means it has been a mixed start to Shaun Maloney's time in charge of Hibernian.

The 39-year-old has now gone winless in his last three Scottish Premiership games since beating Aberdeen and Dundee United in back-to-back games at the start of his tenure towards the end of December.

Demetri Mitchell netted his first goal for the club since arriving from Blackpool in the early stages against Livingston at the weekend, and despite being pegged back just 12 minutes later, Chris Cadden restored Hibernian's lead before half time.

However, despite dominating possession, Hibs were well off the pace in the second half and eventually succumbed to the 3-2 loss following a quickfire Livingston double before the hour mark.

Tuesday's hosts remain in fifth spot thanks to Aberdeen's postponed match and Dundee United's late defeat at Celtic, with the two-point gap remaining intact to United outside the top six.

Maloney will be desperate to get back to winning ways in his first taste of the Edinburgh derby as a manager on Tuesday though, although to do so he will have to accomplish what his predecessors have failed to do since March 2018 - defeating their rivals at Easter Road - when Hibs came out victorious 2-0 under Neil Lennon.

Hearts' Barrie McKay in action with Celtic's Cameron Carter-Vickers on January 26, 2022© Reuters

Meanwhile, Hearts make the trip across Edinburgh on the back of a solid 2-0 victory over fourth-placed Motherwell on Saturday.

Andy Halliday and Ellis Simms netted the goals either side of half time as Robbie Neilson's side cruised to a relatively comfortable three points.

The win leaves Hearts sitting comfortably in third, with the gap to Motherwell being extended to 10 points as a result, and the distance between themselves and Celtic in second remaining at 12 points.

However, Neilson and his side will certainly be avoiding complacency on Tuesday though, with bragging rights well and truly on the line in this fierce rivalry.

Hearts boast the joint-best defence on the road this season, with just 10 goals conceded from as many games, which has seen them lose just three of their away trips in the Scottish Premiership so far.

With no defeats in their last three meetings with their rivals either, Tuesday's visitors will be sure to come out at Easter Road with plenty of confidence, especially considering their excellent run of seven wins across their last 10 matches in all competitions, with the only exceptions being defeats to the Old Firm duo of Rangers and Celtic.

Hibernian Scottish Premiership form:
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • D
  • L

Hibernian form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • W
  • D
  • L

Hearts Scottish Premiership form:
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • W

Hearts form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • W



Team News

Hearts' manager Robbie Neilson on January 26, 2022© Reuters

Hibs boss Maloney will need to assess the availability of both Paul McGinn and captain Paul Hanlon ahead of Tuesday's derby.

The former limped off inside the first half on Saturday, whilst the latter missed out entirely for the second game in a row.

Harry Clarke and Kyle Magennis are also doubts for Tuesday as well, with the duo expected to miss out for at least another week due to injuries.

As for the visitors, Neilson could opt to name an unchanged starting lineup following their impressive victory at the weekend.

His decision will depend on the fitness of his side having played just three days earlier, like their hosts, but the defensive pair of Michael Smith and Craig Halkett are the only injury concerns as things stand.

Simms and Gary Mackay-Steven could be set to lead the line with Liam Boyce in support, although Liverpool-loanee Ben Woodburn could push for a start.

Hibernian possible starting lineup:
Macey; Kiranga, Porteous, Stevenson; Cadden, Campbell, Hayes, Mitchell; Henderson; Nisbet, Murphy

Hearts possible starting lineup:
Gordon; Moore, Souttar, Kingsley; Atkinson, Devlin, Baningime, Halliday; Boyce; Simms, Mackay-Steven


SM words green background

We say: Hibernian 1-1 Hearts

It is difficult to see Hearts losing at their rivals on Tuesday, with their opponents putting in a very poor second-half display on Saturday and struggling overall since the return from the Scottish winter break.

The visitors are in great form and boast a strong record against their neighbours, but we expect the sides to cancel each other out and leave the derby with a share of the points.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 2.5:data



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Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Hearts win with a probability of 45.72%. A win for Hibernian had a probability of 28.09% and a draw had a probability of 26.2%.

The most likely scoreline for a Hearts win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.49%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.07%) and 0-2 (8.38%). The likeliest Hibernian win was 1-0 (8.54%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.44%). The actual scoreline of 0-0 was predicted with a 7.9% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted a draw in this match.


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Game History

How you voted: Hibernian vs Hearts

Hibernian
21.8%
Draw
17.9%
Hearts
60.3%
78
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Hearts manager Robbie Neilson pictured on October 31, 2020
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Celtic1110103132831
2Aberdeen11101024101431
3RangersRangers11713168822
4Dundee UnitedDundee Utd125431813519
5Motherwell116141514119
6St Mirren134361722-515
7Dundee123361824-612
8Kilmarnock123361525-1012
9Ross County132651021-1112
10St Johnstone133191627-1110
11Hearts132381420-69
12Hibernian121561118-78


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