7 hours ago
16
Scottish top-flight managers have a bit of a problem on their hands when it comes to figuring out how to beat Hearts. Eleven have now had a go at it. Each one has failed.
Hogging the ball doesn’t work. The Gorgie men barely got a kick for the best part of an hour against Jens Berthel Askou’s slick Motherwell side back in August, yet despite deservedly trailing 3-0, managed to pick up a point. And it could have been more.
Russell Martin and Brendan Rodgers also set up to dominate possession. That didn’t work out too well, did it? Both suffered a defeat that neither will get the opportunity to avenge.
St Mirren boss Stephen Robinson had some joy in Paisley during the week. His players — as they do so well — got right in the faces of their Edinburgh counterparts.
It looked to have worked. Hearts were uncomfortable for long spells, and couldn’t have complained too much had their unbeaten run finally come to an end.
But as good teams — dare we say, champions — tend to do, they dug deep to earn a share of the spoils.
Tomas Bent Magnussen celebrates after putting Hearts four goals to the good at Tynecastle
Pierre Landry Kabore wheels away after scoring Hearts' second goal
Derek McInnes celebrates a job well done after choosing to freshen up his starting line-up
Matching up in terms of formation didn’t have the desired effect for Stuart Kettlewell and his Kilmarnock side at Rugby Park last month either. The visitors brushed their opponents aside with relative ease.
On Saturday, Steven Pressley’s plan for Dundee was to stifle the Jambos juggernaut. Shut up shop and hit on the counter.
For half an hour, it had some degree of success. Who knows what would have happened had Cameron Congreve’s deflected strike found the net rather than the upright shortly before the half-hour mark?
But from the moment Lawrence Shankland fired home from the edge of the area to put Hearts in front just a couple of minutes later, this game was as good as done.
Three more goals followed and, in truth, the scoreline flattered the men from Tayside.
Hearts are showing on a weekly basis that they can deal with pretty much anything that is thrown at them. It doesn’t matter who or what they come up against, you have absolute confidence that they’ll find a way to get a result.
Kabore has had to be patient since joining Hearts but he made his mark in style against Dundee
The manager must take the bulk of the credit for that, of course. For weeks now, Derek McInnes has been talking about how much the players, staff and fans are lapping up this run which has seen them open up a nine-point gap over Celtic at the summit.
He’s discussed the importance of embracing the pressure, the raised levels of expectation. It’s hard to know if the man himself is actually enjoying it all though, even if he assures us he is. He certainly puts himself through the wringer on the touchline.
Watching him pace up and down the technical area on Saturday afternoon provided no shortage of entertainment. In the early stages, he lambasted his own players, the opposition players and the officials. Anyone who would listen, really.
We got a smile when Shankland broke the deadlock before Pierre Landry Kabore then got himself a cuddle after doubling Hearts’ lead before the break.
Well deserved too, it must be said. The Burkina Faso forward arrived in Gorgie over the summer after lighting up the Estonian top flight last season, but Hearts supporters have seen precious little of him.
Indeed, this was just his third start for the club, coming in to replace fan favourite Claudio Braga. He possesses a different skillset to the Portuguese, offering a more physical focal point up top.
Lawrence Shankland opened the scoring for Hearts with his tenth goal of the campaign so far
Hearts tried to utilise that early on by going route one on more than one occasion, but it didn’t really pay off. The goal settled him down.
His second came at the end of a free-flowing move which saw Dundee keeper Jon McCracken tip Blair Spittal’s effort on to the bar, only to look up and find Kabore following up to finish somewhat nonchalantly from close range.
Substitute Tomas Magnusson rounded things off late on after bundling an Alexandros Kyziridis corner home to record his first goal in maroon.
If Hearts are going to sustain this title challenge — and there’s no evidence to suggest they can’t — then they’ll need everyone in the squad to contribute.
There are plenty of options available to McInnes, who named a different starting XI on Saturday for the first time since mid-September.
It also helps when he has so many players capable of playing in different positions.
Oisin McEntee isn’t a right-back, but you wouldn’t guess that based on the way he goes about things.
Magnussen's goal put the seal on another eye-catching win for the title pacesetters
Harry Milne is another who continues to impress regardless of where he lines up. He’s spent much of this campaign on the right of midfield, but on Saturday, was in his more natural left-back slot.
You lost count of the number of times he was sent scampering down the wing. He’s simply relentless, and was involved in both first-half goals.
The 29-year-old was plucked from Partick Thistle back in February and has taken top-tier football in his stride. The fact he was handed a new contract so soon after joining — he’s now tied down until 2027 — perfectly illustrates what the manager thinks of him.
At this rate, he’ll be a Premiership winner and Champions League regular by the time that deal runs out.
