Plzen's 11,000-seater Doosan Arena is a tidy little ground, but what an arena Kilmarnock are going to experience tonight.

Copenhagen's Parken, which hosted four games at Euro 2020, is some gaff.

Derek McInnes' first game in charge of Kilmarnock was at Palmerston - a scruffy win over Queen of the South.

They've come a long way in the two-and-a-half years since.

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Fighting it out on the European stage is where Hearts belong, says midfielder Cammy Devlin.

After a couple of poor results domestically, that view will be put to the test tonight in Plzen.

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Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes tells BBC Scotland: "We were waiting on one or two last night. One has made it, one hasn't - Robby McCrorie still has tightness in his groin and it's not worth the risk. That needs to settle down.

"We have earned the right to be here and we need to set about the task. We'll be under pressure but the game is there to be enjoyed. We need to work together, show confidence and personality.

"It's important we have a presence. We've got to own the middle of the pitch, particularly in our own half. We've got to defend that part of the pitch with our lives.

"They're similar to Tromso. We defended narrowly and well last week. This is a better level of player and team but there are parallels there."

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Recent form: Viktoria Plzen warmed up for tonight with a comfortable 3-0 win away to Ceske Budejovice. That result extended their unbeaten start to their league campaign and they sit second with 13 points, two points off Sparta Prague.

That form was replicated in their third qualifying round tie with Ukraine's Kryvbas. Miroslav Koubek's side won 2-1 in their away leg and followed that up with a 1-0 home victory.

European pedigree: Plzen are less experienced in continental terms than either Sparta or Slavia Prague but most of their games in Uefa competitions have come in the past 14 years.

Group-stage campaigns in the Champions League and Conference League over the past two years have brought contrasting fortunes. They lost all six games in the premier competition in season 2022-23 but won six out of six in their Conference League group last term.

They reached the quarter-finals and only lost to Fiorentina after extra-time. Other opponents last season included Servette, who they beat on penalties in the round of 16, and group opponents Astana, Ballkani and Dynamo Zagreb.

Dangermen: Czech Republic attacker Pavel Sulc and Daniel Vasulin are Plzen's top scorers, each with three goals from seven appearances - both start tonight.

Slovakia international midfielder Erik Jirka has also provided a couple of goals but Brazilian Ricardinho, a summer signing from Levski Sofia, is yet to get off the mark.

Like Sulc, Lukas Cerv and Robin Hranac were part of the Czech Republic's Euro 2024 squad.

Former Hearts goalkeeper Zdenek Zlamal on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast: "The key for Hearts is the counter-attacks

"The Plzen defenders, and especially the midfielders and wing-backs, they are not fast and I know Hearts have fast wingers.

"So I think it is key for Hearts that they have an active compact block and when they get the ball, get it straight to wingers."

Ryan Stevenson
Former Hearts midfielder on BBC's Scottish Football Podcast

The performances need to become a lot, lot better than what they have been in the last two matches.

My head says it's going to be very, very difficult but my heart is just hoping that we get half a chance, hopefully it falls to Lawrence Shankland and we can take it, or one of the boys who have been scoring.

If we can just put in a good performance, the fans will be happy if they see that more than anything.

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Hearts head coach Steven Naismith tells BBC Scotland his thoughts on switching to a back three again.

"It's a shape we're familiar with and it gives us a good base," he said.

"Out of possession it makes us solid and in possession it will give us an opportunity to get a bit of control in the game.

"It's a two-legged European tie so it's going to be more of a chess match than a basketball match.

"It's about them having the ball at times and us being patient, and then when we have the ball we don't need to score in 10 seconds. We need to work a good opportunity."

Naismith confirms Zander Clark suffered a back spasm last night and that's why he is absent from the squad.

He expects it to be a short-term issue, though.

But this insight from Sebastian Stanbury (what a name!) will be music to the ears of Kilmarnock fans.

The Danish journalist thinks Copenhagen could be "going towards a crisis" judging by their recent performances.

Direct your complaints his way if it turns out to be nonsense...

Midfielder Brad Lyons says Conference League qualification would be "incredible" for Kilmarnock.

He can say that again, beating a team with the European pedigree of Copenhagen would be remarkable in itself.

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Recent form: Copenhagen go into the first leg of their Conference League play-off with Kilmarnock off the back of a 1-1 draw with Viborg on Sunday.

The weekend game was their fifth in the Danish top flight this term and the result leaves them a place and a point behind league leaders Silkeborg, having won three and drawn two of those five matches.

After finishing third in the league last season, they entered Conference League qualifying at the second-round stage, where they dismantled Magpies of Gibraltar before scraping past Czech side Banik Ostrava on penalties.

European pedigree: The very fact Copenhagen have competed in the Champions League groups in the past two seasons highlights the scale of the task Kilmarnock face.

In the 2022-23 campaign, they finished bottom of their section but earned draws with Manchester City, Sevilla and Borussia Dortmund.

Last term, they made it to the last 16, where they were again paired with Premier League champions City, after memorable group wins against Manchester United, Galatasaray and an impressive draw away to Bayern Munich.

The Danish side beat Celtic over two legs in the Europa League last 32 in 2019-20 before going on to reach the quarters, but perhaps Kilmarnock can take inspiration from the 4-0 defeat they suffered at Aberdeen in the 2007-08 Uefa Cup.

Dangerman: Picking out one is difficult in a squad of such quality, but teenage striker Orri Oskarsson already has six goals in just nine games this season.

The Icelandic forward also managed 15 strikes last term, one more than ex-Celtic and Southampton winger Mohamed Elyounoussi.

Keeping on the Celtic theme, Jordan Larrson, son of Henrik, is also an attacking option, while former Dortmund and Sevilla man Thomas Delaney is an anchor in midfield - but both are out tonight.

David Currie
BBC Sport Scotland in Copenhagen

The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, The Snow Queen etc etc. Copenhagen’s most famous former resident knew how tell a tall tale.

But even Hans Christian Andersen might have trouble trying to sell a Killie win tonight in the Danish capital.

Last season, Copenhagen reached the last 16 of the Champions League, beating Manchester United and drawing with Bayern Munich along the way before being knocked out by Pep Guardiola's Manchester City.

Anyway, Killie fans don’t seem to believe in fairytales, football or otherwise.

"Three-nil Copenhagen". "One-nil Copenhagen". "I fear the worst". Just some of the predictions from travelling supporters. Although I did get "as long as we’re still it for the second leg" and an "anything's possible".

Alasdair Lamont
BBC Sport Scotland

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Craig Gordon makes history for Hearts tonight.

He will make his 23rd European appearance for the club, surpassing Steven Pressley and Henry Smith's record of 22.

Gordon, 41, has racked up 85 European appearances in total, making his first in a 1-0 away win in the Uefa Cup against Bordeaux back in November 2003.

Striker Lawrence Shankland could also write his name into the history books.

A Shankland goal would take put him level with John Robertson as Hearts' top European scorer on seven.

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You'll have a choice of two commentaries tonight.

The Sportsound team will provide audio coverage from Copenhagen and Plzen.

The 'watch & listen' tab above will give you both options. In the meantime, wrap your ears around the build-up from 17:30 BST.

Derek McInnes changes six from the extra-time League Cup loss to Motherwell at the weekend and hands a debut to right-back Jack Burroughs.

The former Scotland Under-21 cap arrived on loan from Coventry earlier this week and goes straight into the team - his first start in any game since January 2024.

Lewis Mayo, Brad Lyons, Liam Donnelly, Matty Kennedy and Kyle Vassell are the other changes.

Kieran O'Hara keeps his place in the sticks with Robby McCrorie on the bench.

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Steven Naismith has made five changes to the Hearts side that slumped to a shock League Cup defeat to Falkirk.

Lawrence Shankland returns to the XI, along with Frankie Kent, Kye Rowles, Jorge Grant and Cammy Devlin.

Craig Halkett, Balir Spittal, Yutaro Oda, Liam Boyce and Yan Dhanda are the five coming out of the team.

Craig Gordon continues in goal and makes a record-breaking European appearance for Hearts - more on that in a bit.

Fellow keeper Zander Clark, meanwhile, isn't even on the bench.

As for Plzen, their first-choice Viktoria goalkeeper Martin Jedlicka has been missing through illness recently and is on the bench, so Hearts will hope to provide a stern test for back-up Marian Tvrdon.

Former Burnley and Derby County striker Matej Vydra is on the bench.

Copenhagen: Trott, Diks, Vavro, Gocholeishvili, Meling, Lerager, Falk, Froholdt, Elyounoussi, Oskarsson, Achouri

Substitutes: Sander, Runarsson, Garananga, Gabriel, Mattsson, Robert, Clem, Hojer, Chiakha.

Kilmarnock: O'Hara, Burroughs, Mayo, Wright, Findlay, Lyons, Watson, Donnelly, Kennedy, Vassell, Watkins.

Substitutes: McCrorie, Glavin, Ndaba, Deas, McKenzie, Armstrong, Mackay-Steven, Wales, Cameron, Anderson, Polworth, Bainbridge.

Viktoria Plzen: Tvrdon, Dweh, Hranac, Jemelka, Kopic, Kalvach, Cerv, Sulc, Havel, Jirka, Vasulin.

Substitutes: Wiegele, Jedlicka, Sene, Ricardinho, Vydra, Sojka, Bello, Mosquera, Panos, Cadu, Mika, Sloncik.

Hearts: Gordon, Kent, Kingsley, Rowles, Taylor, Devlin, Boateng, Grant, Penrice, Vargas, Shankland.

Substitutes: Fulton, Halkett, Oyegoke, McKay, Oda, Spittal, Forrest, Dhanda, Pollock, Tait, Boyce, Drammeh.

Team news, then?

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Image source, SNS

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It's play-off time.

Hearts are in Plzen and Kilmarnock are in Copenhagen as the Scottish pair aim to qualify for the Europa League and Conference League, respectively.

Two incredibly tough ties for the Premiership duo, who both kick off at 18:00 BST.