Europe still in Pascali’s sights

The Rugby Park side currently sit in ninth spot in the table after being held to a 1-1 draw at home by Hibernian on Sunday.

Today they host Hearts, in the middle of a group of games that Pascali believes will be crucial for Killie, who had to settle for seventh position last term after failing to make the top six before the league split. He is determined to ensure they improve upon their ranking this time.

He said: “These four matches in ten days are going to tell us what we can do in this league. I would be more than gutted if we finished this season between sixth and tenth position. There is a good chance this year to finish in the top six and maybe even push for Europe.

“I will try my best, along with the rest of the team, to follow our dream of maybe finishing in a European place.”

Kilmarnock failed to hold on to their early lead as Hibs fought back to claim a share of the points at the weekend, but Pascali is confident that matches against Hearts, Motherwell and St Mirren can provide the points to propel Killie back up the table.

He added: “The matches over this period are going to be crucial.

“They are going to tell us what we are going to do this season. If we have positive results, we could be sitting in third or fourth position.”