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Papara Park, Trabzon
Thursday 22 October, 5:45pm (UK time)
Hearts must recover from a 7-1 defeat at Celtic on Sunday when they travel to Trabzonspor in the Conference League on Thursday, and they will have to do it with a depleted midfield.
Kick-off at Papara Park is at 5:45pm UK time in a league phase fixture where both clubs took something from matchday one, Trabzonspor beating KuPS 4-2 and Hearts drawing 1-1 at home to Nordsjaelland.
Trabzonspor vs Hearts preview and form guide
Hearts sit third in the Scottish Premiership on 16 points from nine games, but the visitors will be short on confidence after their defence was badly exposed at Celtic.
That game was 5-1 at half-time, with Laurent Mendy scoring Hearts' only goal in the 41st minute after Celtic had raced into a 4-0 lead inside 38 minutes.
Hearts have scored once in each of their last three away games, a run that has brought a defeat at Falkirk, a draw at Kilmarnock and the heavy loss at Celtic.
Wouter Vrancken said his side were “really good” for the first 70 minutes against Nordsjaelland, in which Oisin McEntee put them ahead on 33 minutes before a deflected Nicklas Rojkjaer shot levelled it in the 86th.
Vrancken, previously head coach of Sint-Truidense VV, Genk and Gent, became the first Belgian to manage Hearts when he took over from Derek McInnes in June.
Both sides come into the game on short turnarounds, with Hearts playing at Celtic on Sunday and Trabzonspor beating Besiktas on Monday, although the hosts are at home and the visitors must make the trip to Turkey.
Trabzonspor have won all four games under Thomas Reis, scoring 13 and conceding twice, with a Mohamed Salah hat-trick against Galatasaray the highlight of that run.
Their only defeat in their last five games, 1-0 away at Konyaspor on 12 September, came shortly before Reis took charge and was the last time they failed to score, as they have netted at least twice in every game since.
Reis, a German who arrived from Ludogorets in September after Fatih Tekke left, took Samsunspor to third place in the Super Lig in 2024-25, so he knows Turkish football well.
Salah, who joined as a free agent from Liverpool in August, has nine goals in all competitions and scored in the wins over KuPS and Besiktas.
After the Galatasaray game Reis said the whole team had worked to create space for Salah because they know how dangerous he is on the ball.
The hosts have won their last four home games, and Andre Onana, on loan from Manchester United, saved a penalty during that win at KuPS.
Fabinho, Salah's former Liverpool team-mate, anchors the midfield after arriving from Al Ittihad, and the Brazilian was booked in the 33rd minute against Besiktas.
Thousands of Trabzonspor supporters celebrated Monday's win over Besiktas in the streets with flares and smoke bombs, a sign of the atmosphere Hearts will face at Papara Park.
Team news and predicted lineups for Trabzonspor vs Hearts
Hearts team news
McEntee, the scorer against Nordsjaelland, was taken off at half-time at Celtic with calf pain, and Vrancken said “I hope so” when asked whether he could travel on Wednesday's charter flight.
Ageu, Spittal and Renaud are all missing, and Vrancken admitted “we are already thin in midfield”, which makes Mendy and Tomas Magnusson the likeliest pairing in the middle if McEntee does not recover.
Christian Borchgrevink is expected back after an ankle problem kept him out against Celtic, giving Vrancken a choice at right-back with Jordi Altena, who has also been used in midfield.
Claudio Braga was substituted against Nordsjaelland after a booking, with Vrancken explaining “he pulled a shirt already two times, so we couldn't take the risk”, and he is expected to play behind James Wilson.
Hearts predicted lineup vs Trabzonspor
Hearts predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Reus; Altena, Fagan-Walcott, Findlay, Milne; Mendy, Magnusson; Miller, Braga, McPake; Wilson
Walcott
Trabzonspor team news
Paul Onuachu scored after three minutes at KuPS and was off injured by the tenth, and Reis called it very unlucky while saying he hoped the striker would be back soon.
Franculino came off the bench at KuPS to score twice, then started against Besiktas on Monday and set up Salah's goal, so he looks the natural option to lead the line.
Ruslan Malinovskyi, Okay Yokuslu and Arseniy Batagov are all sidelined, while Mustafa Eskihellac is doubtful with a muscle problem.
Ozan Tufan, who scored the opener against Besiktas, is likely to partner Fabinho in midfield again, with Ernest Muci in the number 10 role he filled on Monday.
Trabzonspor predicted lineup vs Hearts
Trabzonspor predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Onana; Pina, Nwaiwu, Savic, Cabral; Tufan, Fabinho; Salah, Muci, Simsir; Franculino
Head-to-head: Trabzonspor vs Hearts
Trabzonspor and Hearts have never met in a competitive match, so there is no history to lean on and the fixture comes down to current form and squad strength.
Both clubs reached the Conference League after falling short higher up, Hearts after exits to Sturm Graz in Champions League qualifying and Benfica in the Europa League, and Trabzonspor after a 5-0 aggregate defeat to Ferencvaros in the Europa League play-offs.
Hearts then needed penalties to beat Rapid Vienna in the Conference League play-off, whereas Trabzonspor's defeat dropped them straight into the league phase.
Our Trabzonspor vs Hearts prediction and tips
Odds correct as of Tuesday, 20 October 2026, 15:35 BST.
- Mohamed Salah to score, having found the net against both KuPS and Besiktas
- Aral Simsir to add a second after creating chances for others
- Hearts to be kept scoreless by a goalkeeper who has already saved a penalty in this competition
Ellis has been working as a freelance sports writer since graduating from University in 2023. He is especially passionate about football, with a particular love for Manchester United.