Viktoria Plzen haven't studied Hearts as boss insists Champions League pedigree means NOTHING

Viktoria Plzen's impressive Champions League pedigree will mean NOTHING when they go head to head with Hearts in the Europa League play-off round.

That's the verdict of boss Miroslav Koubek who comes up against Steven Naismith and his troops in a two-legged shootout to reach the newly revamped second tier competition. The winner will advance to the league phase of the competition while the loser will not miss out completely with the parachute guarantee of Conference League football already in the bag.

The Jambos enter the competition at the final qualifying hurdle - but face a tough Plzen test with the Czechs having plenty of experience in the Champions League with notable scalps over the years on their own turf against the likes of Atletico Madrid, Napoli and Lyon. Koubek, 72, is in his third spell of managing the club and has already started the mind games with the Gorgie outfit after defeating Ukranian side Kryvbas to earn a crack at Hearts.

He said: "We must always be modest and humble. The club experienced golden times with a wonderful generation that played in the Champions League group stages.

"But this is a completely different team. We accept each tie of the European competition with humility. I haven't studied the opponents Hearts yet because we mainly focused on Kryvbas.

"Now we will look at them and of course, we know it's Scottish football, so it will be a very hard game and a physical battle for us.

"It's great for Czech football that we are guaranteed group stage football again and it proves its quality. It's a great experience for the many young players we have in the team.

"I have to praise our defence again for keeping a clean sheet against really hard opponents."