Robbie Neilson will be only survivor in the away dressing room at Ibrox tomorrow from the last time Hearts won in Govan in 2014.
The Jambos gaffer may have left and returned in the seven years since but while much has changed he insists the task in hand remains the exact same.
On that occasion both sides were embarking on a battle at the top end of the Championship that would see the Jambos - who bloodied favourites Rangers ’ nose with that opening day victory thanks to Osman Sow’s last gasp winner - emerging champions nine months later.
It may be two entirely different sides set who are set to go head-to-head in tomorrow’s top of the table Premiership blockbuster.
But Neilson insists similarities between his current squad - the only unbeaten side left in the top flight - and the class of 2014 don’t begin and end in the dug out.
Indeed he is preparing to set his side out looking for a statement victory that would see Hearts leapfrog Steven Gerrard’s champions at the top of the table.
And he is confident he has the tools at his disposal to do just that with the division's joint top scorer Liam Boyce flanked by an array on attacking talents including Barrie McKay who is set to return to Ibrox for the first time since leaving four years ago.
Neilson said: “We had a good team back then, a lot threats, similar to the team we have now.
“We’ve got a lot of young, hungry guys and a few experienced ones. They’re looking forward to the game.
“That’s a big difference to teams I’ve been involved with in the past, going through to Glasgow.
“The game itself, it was the first of the season, so it was a marker for the rest of the campaign, showed us where we wanted to be.
“When you go to Ibrox or Parkhead, you are always the underdog. They’re just expected to win week in, week out.
“We go there feeling we’re in good form. But we’ll find out at three o’clock on Saturday.”
Hearts are at full strength with John Souttar back in contention having missed the last two victories against Livingston and Motherwell before the international break.
The Jambos will also be the first Premiership side to have a backing behind them - with 900 fans making the trip west.
And the manager said: “It’s brilliant, so we have 900 so I’m sure they will be making some noise, hopefully we can keep them happy and they can have a good Saturday night.”
Hearts are part of a five-team top flight consortium leading a review into how the SPFL markets itself - with TV deals being a major part of the discussion.
Neilson backs the review - and insists he can’t believe the clash between the top two in the league isn’t being broadcast live on telly.
He said: “You could sit here and talk about it all day. We played Aberdeen recently and that for me was a game that should be shown to showcase all the teams.
“But the way the contract works they have to go round certain teams every so often, that’s the way it is.
“I agree with the club, I have spoken to Ann Budge and Andrew McKinlay about it, I think we can do better with it.
“I think there is a lot of good games we don’t put on TV, and then they go to games that I wouldn’t even want to watch, never mind people all over the world.
“So I think selection of games is a big thing, but it will come down to money and teams maybe not getting the same amount of games on TV.”
