Update on Liam Boyce and Kenneth Vargas injuries ahead of Hearts v Rangers

Liam Boyce will be given every chance to prove his fitness for Hearts' Premiership meeting with Rangers on Wednesday. Although rated doubtful at the moment, the Northern Irishman is making progress in his recovery after a leg knock forced him off in the first half against Kilmarnock on Saturday.

Medical staff are keeping a close eye on him and Hearts will give him until the last minute before making a decision on whether he can face Rangers. They won't take unnecessary risks with the 32-year-old given the busy period of fixtures ahead.

Boyce appeared to jerk his leg after playing a forward pass against Kilmarnock and went down. After being assessed by the Hearts physio, he was withdrawn and replaced by Toby Sibbick. The Tynecastle side went on to win the match 1-0 thanks to a deflected Lawrence Shankland effort.

Costa Rican winger Kenneth Vargas missed Saturday's match but he has an outside chance of making the Rangers game. He sustained an ankle injury in training last Friday but Hearts are confident it is not serious. They will assess him over the next 48 hours and then decide if he is ready to join the squad to face the Ibrox club.

Hearts will enter Wednesday's encounter with confidence after winning four successive league games and conceding just one goal in the process. However, their only two defeats in the last six matches came against Rangers. They surrendered the lead late on to lose 2-1 at Ibrox at the end of October, and then suffered a 3-1 reverse in last month's Viaplay Cup semi-final.