There is no such thing as the strongest or best Heart of Midlothian XI. Not in the eyes of head coach Steven Naismith anyway.

To Naismith, it is a squad game. That was demonstrated last season. Only once did he keep the same starting XI in consecutive games while averaging at least three subs per game.

He admitted he is "very much against the favoured XI". He and his coaching staff believe in the group.

"It is not so much about 11 players," he said. "There is much more tactical emphasis on football matches now that gone are the days of, 'We won last week so throw the same XI out this week'. The game is moving away from that, I certainly don't see the game that way.

"And we've recruited good quality players. We've now got real good competition. I've been there as a player. Players take dips, it can be from what is happening in their home life to maybe a niggle they are carrying. It helps with all that having a competitive squad.

"We are pleased with what's happened when it has happened this pre-season."

But how do you pick an XI from a group of nearly 30 first-team players? Liam Boyce admitted he wouldn't like to be the manager picking the team.

And then, on the back of that, how do you keep them all happy?

Naismith joked: "Just close your eyes and pick one, they are all good players!

"Every game is different so what we are coming up against, somebody's strengths are more suited to that game than others.

"Don't get me wrong, the biggest challenge for me is going to be the first month because we have got one game a week."

When the games start coming thick and fast, everyone will be used. That's been the message during pre-season.

The management team has held meetings with the squad over the last five weeks looking at different elements of the team's play and within that will be the details around rotation and squad use. Disappointment is expected but it can be managed as long as everyone is clear about the plan, the process and their role.

"Having a fully-fit squad all desperate to be involved there is going to be disappointment but it has been our job through pre-season and this week to highlight that to the players, to say there will be disappointment," Naismith said.

"I expect them to be disappointed if they aren't in the team but we will need everybody at some point. We got a lot of our success last season from having a good mentality around the squad, a good togetherness and everybody backing each other, even if they are on the bench and that'll be needed this season."

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The hope is that it will lead to strong and healthy competition. To the standard being high in training and come the weekend or Thursday night.

"For a club like Hearts that’s where you need to be, when I came here I was expecting that," Boyce said. Everyone needs to be expecting people to push you and you need to be on your A-game to play.

"A couple of the results in pre-season have not gone our way but you can tell with the intensity, even in training you can’t rest at all - you need to be on it. If you’re not producing a moment of quality when you get the ball, someone else in training is doing it and he is going to get chosen ahead of you. It’s just constantly driving it."

One area that has gained more focus than most is the goalkeeping position. Naismith knows who he is going to play against Rangers but it is not the case they will automatically be No.1.

Conversations were had throughout pre-season with Zander Clark and Craig Gordon on the situations with Naismith seeking their opinions too.

"We've got two goalies fighting it out for one spot at the moment effectively and they are two really good goalies," he said. 

"It is a hard decision for myself, all I can do is put my point across to both and as I've said to them, try and keep everybody content as much as possible."

Come 75 minutes before kick-off, when Hearts announce the starting XI, it will provoke plenty of interest and intrigue each week.