Hearts boss Craig Levein said he's wary of facing a fired-up Rangers on Sunday but acknowledged that his side will benefit should the Ibrox crowd turn against the embattled Light Blues players.

Levein's Jam Tarts visit Govan on Sunday in their first post-split fixture.

They will face a Rangers side left reeling by a 4-0 Scottish Cup thrashing by Celtic and apparent dressing room discontent after Kenny Miller and Lee Wallace were suspended by the club on Tuesday.

Tynecastle manager Levein flatly refused to discuss the current situation at Ibrox, but suggested that Rangers' current struggles could potentially be to Hearts' advantage.

Asked if his charges can draw confidence from Rangers' display against in the Scottish Cup semi-final, he said: "There are two ways of looking at that, any good team, which Rangers are, that suffer a heavy defeat are always dangerous in their next game.

"There's a chance of their being a bounce back factor, we have to be wary of that.

"It hurts when you lose, they lost last week so they'll be determined not to be in that situation again so we'll have to be good sure.

"But we always intend to start well and if what's going on at Ibrox leads to discontent in the stadium then that can possibly help us."

Hearts have already added two strikers to their ranks for next season, with Steven MacLean and Uche Ikpeazu signing pre-contract deals.

Levein is confident his new recruits will come good.

He added: "I think Steven is a fantastic footballer, it might sound strange but I like the fact he has never been able to run.

"A lot of the time strikers deteriorate when they lose their pace but Steven's game isn't about pace.

"It's not going to affect how he plays so I know I'll get a level of performance which will be consistent over the next two seasons."

Steven Naismith and Kyle Lafferty are currently the only two senior strikers at Hearts.

Levein revealed he's "hopeful" Lafferty will remain at the club next season but said they are currently unable to afford Naismith's salary.