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Striker Kevin Denkey (right) will be sorely missed by Cercle because of suspension Conference League: Cercle Brugge v Hearts Venue: Jan Breydelstadion Date: Thursday, 28 November Kick-off: 17: 45 GMT Coverage: Listen on BBC Radio Scotland Extra/Sounds/DAB/810MW plus live text commentary on the BBC Sport website Despite Heart of Midlothian's lowly position in the Scottish Premiership and a run of three successive defeats, most fans will view their latest Conference League match with some confidence. While Neil Critchley's side have stumbled out of the starting blocks domestically, two wins from their first two games in Europe means they look likely to qualify for the knockout rounds. Seven points is expected to be enough to finish in the top 24 of the 36 teams. Finishing in the top eight would see them progress directly to the round of 16 while a place between ninth and 16th means they will have a home tie in their play-off round. Cercle Brugge stand in their way on Thursday and a point or better seems more than attainable. Not considered one of Belgium's big names, in recent years they have tended to finish between the middle and bottom of the table, with a brief spell in the second division that almost saw them fall even further. However, Cercle have consolidated since the takeover of Dmitry Rybolovlev - the Russian billionaire who owns Monaco - in 2017 and have quickly returned to the top flight. In the last two years, they finished sixth then fourth - their highest position since 2008. While they are not free-spending in the way you might expect the club of a billionaire owner to be, they have improved their infrastructure behind the scenes immensely, leading to that rise up the table. Over the summer they were dealt several blows as key players exited. Centre-back Jesper Daland joined Cardiff, Leonardo Lopes and Boris Popovic were allowed to leave, while loanees Hugo Siquet and Felix Lemarechal departed. A rebuild followed and the recruitment work was done early but the turnover in players, plus the addition of European football - including a narrow success against Kilmarnock - has led to a poor domestic campaign. Cercle find themselves in a relegation play-off spot as the 14th in the 16-team Pro League. The biggest drawback for the hosts as they prepare to face Hearts is the Kevin Denkey-shaped hole up front. Hearts confirm Kerr's role in men's teams Visit our Hearts page for all the latest news, analysis and fan views Get Hearts news notifications in the BBC Sport app The Togo international was the top scorer in the Pro League last season and was widely expected to move on. He ended up staying and has scored 11 goals in 23 games so far this year. He recently agreed a winter move to MLS side FC Cincinnati but it is the red card in Cercle's previous Conference League game against LASK Linz that means he is suspended for the Hearts game. Replacing him will not be easy for manager Miron Muslic, who must also do without first-choice keeper Warleson. Instead, Thibo Somers - a one-club man known as Mr Cercle - and Ecuadorian winger Alan Minda will be relied upon and flair player Felipe Augusto could be moved up top. It is hard to predict Muslic's line-up though. Domestic games have taken on more importance given Cercle's lowly league position and in a recent Conference League game against Vikingur he was informed by those above him that certain key players would be rested for the trip to Iceland. They lost that game 3-1 - the Reykjavik side's first group-stage win in European competition. The Belgians were humbled and put out a stronger team against LASK in Austria, managing a 0-0 draw with 10 men. There are, therefore, a lot of similarities with Hearts and their hosts. Both are struggling domestically, both have improved performances in recent weeks without the results to show for it, and both are missing their strikers from last season – Cercle literally, Hearts figuratively. Hearts fans can go into the game feeling relaxed. Even if Critchley's side leave Belgium without a point, they face Moldovan side Petrocub at home just before Christmas, where a win will be widely expected. Getting the job done against Cercle would be a welcome boost to all at Tynecastle though. Man Utd boss Amorim speaks to media and latest football news FA investigates referee Coote over booking claims England arrive at judgement day for Bazball Investigating the rise of alcohol-related deaths in women under 40 BBC journalist Hazel Martin goes on a personal journey to find out what's behind the sharp rise Uncovering differences in lifespans across animal species What are the factors that affect the ticking on our biological clocks? 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