Hearts face Zurich for a place in group stage

HEARTS will play FC Zurich for a place in the Europa League group stage after the Swiss side saw off Linfield last night. Already leading 2-0 from the first leg, Franco Foda’s team put their woeful domestic form behind them to beat the Northern Irish outfit 3-0 at the Letzigrund. Former Hearts winger Donis Avdijaj opened his account for his new club with a first-half brace before Ivan Santini completed the scoring after the break. Hearts travel to Switzerland for the first leg next Thursday, with the game taking place at St Gallen’s Kybunpark due to a music concert taking place at Zurich’s home next Friday. The second leg will take place at Tynecastle on August 25. Zurich’s European campaign has offered embattled boss Foda some encouragement following a poor start to the Swiss Super League. Following a 3-0 defeat to Sion last weekend, Zurich remain rooted to the bottom of the table with one point from four games. To make matters worse, they have also not managed to score a goal in any of those matches. Hearts prepare for the game with a home clash with Dundee United on Sunday, while Zurich travel to Winterthur on the same day. Meanwhile, the Tynecastle club are looking to cash in on want-away winger Josh Ginnelly. The 25-year-old has fallen further down the pecking order following the summer arrivals of Alan Forrest and Lawrence Shankland, and the club are prepared to listen to offers. Ginnelly has not played this term after his pre-season preparations were hampered by a thigh injury. The attacker’s attempts to hold down a regular starting berth have not been helped by repeated Covid absences, with the unvaccinated Englishman contracting the virus three times.