SNS GroupHearts head coach Steven Naismith has called on his side to reproduce many of the traits that he saw in the Czech Republic as they look to kick-start their season against Motherwell.
Hearts followed a goalless William Hill Premiership opener against Rangers with two poor performances in defeats against Dundee and then Championship side Falkirk in the Premier Sports Cup.
But they were seconds away from holding Viktoria Plzen to a stalemate on Thursday before an own goal by Daniel Oyegoke in the sixth minute of stoppage-time saw them suffer a 1-0 defeat in the first leg of the Europa League play-offs.
Naismith now hopes his side have turned a corner in their early-season form and wants to see evidence of that at Fir Park on Sunday before the second leg against the Czech side four days later.
“We showed we can create good chances,” he told Hearts TV. “I thought overall our defending was good, our structure was good and our energy was good.
“So that was more like the Rangers performance than Falkirk and Dundee. We will need that on Sunday and we will need that next Thursday.”
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
