Bigger than the Nou Camp: What awaits Hearts and their fans inside PAOK's fiery Toumba Stadium

Thessaloniki will be hot, hostile and energy-sapping

Hearts enter PAOK Salonika's Toumba Stadium on Thursday with their European aspirations on the line. Looking to overturn a 2-1 first-leg defeat in the Europa Conference League play-off, they face a hostile environment in stifling 30-degree heat in front of raucous Greek supporters.

PAOK's fanbase have a reputation for being wild and aggressive towards visiting teams and are certain to make life difficult for those from Edinburgh. Around 600-700 Hearts supporters are expected to be in attendance on Thursday evening. They are advised to gather in Aristotelous Square in Thessaloniki centre during the day and make their way to Gate 11 at the city’s port to board complimentary buses which will depart for Toumba at 5.30pm local time.

The travelling fans will be housed in the south-west corner of the ground – entry is via Gate 8 – opposite the Curva Nord where PAOK'S ultras gather.

For the Tynecastle players, one of the biggest challenges will be the playing surface inside the Toumba. The grass pitch is one of the largest in the competition and is significantly longer and wider than Tynecastle. Its dimensions are bigger than Barcelona's Nou Camp and PAOK are adept at utilising the space to their advantage.

Toumba's capacity sits at 28,701 people with a pitch 106m long and 71m wide. The Nou Camp is 105m long and 68m wide, according to UEFA data. For comparison, the surface at Tynecastle measures 100m long and 64m wide. Whilst Hearts were able to squeeze the game and restrict PAOK's space in the first leg, they will find that much more difficult in Greece.

The dangerous Andrija Zivkovic will look to take advantage of the extra room after winning a penalty and scoring the winning goal in Edinburgh. Young midfielder Giannis Konstantelias is another who likes to roam freely into pockets of space, whilst Russian international midfielder Magomed Ozdoeyev will also be out to make an impact after being refused a visa to enter the UK for the first leg.

Hearts need pace, energy and stamina in order to cope with the size of the playing surface and the debilitating temperatures. Players like Nathaniel Atkinson, Toby Sibbick, Cammy Devlin and Aidan Denholm are likely to be important on the night if they are to overhaul the 2-1 scoreline and reach the Conference League group stage.