Heidenheim head coach Frank Schmidt says it’s “unbelievable” to be leading his hometown side out against Hearts on Thursday in the Conference League.

Schmidt has been in charge since 2007, but his association with the club stretches even further back after joining as a player over 20 years ago.

“It is an incredible journey which has taken a long time,” said Schmidt, whose side host Chelsea later this month. “It goes all the way back to lower leagues where I started as a player. I had a beer after every game, and even after training!

“I took over as coach in the fifth division. If someone told me that 17 years later, we would be in the Conference League, we would have needed to do some sort of mental examination.

“I’m not really thinking about how incredible it all is. It’s more that we deserve to be where we are. We are always striving to improve. Although we come from a small place in Germany and we don’t have a huge history in professional German football, we still deserve to be where we are.

“It’s exciting for me. Alex Raaf, our team manager, started with me together as players in the sixth division. Now we are sitting here ready to play against Heart of Midlothian. It’s unbelievable.”