Hearts debrief: Defence switching off; Ginnelly's good week; McKay conundrum

A look back at Hearts’ 3-0 Scottish Cup quarter-final defeat by Celtic at Tynecastle Park.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH

Josh Ginnelly led the line very well for Hearts in what was a tough shift. The in-form striker made good runs in behind, was a threat when he got on the ball and worked the Celtic defence hard. The in-form Englishman has had a good week.

DEFINING MOMENT

The second Celtic goal just before half time killed off the game and Hearts’ chances. Robbie Neilson was disappointed that his team were not switched when Celtic took a quick throw on the right and then failed to match Kyogo’s trademark run to the front post. There was no way back for Hearts after that.

YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

The Hearts centre-backs were asked to step out of defence in a bid to put pressure on the ball and slow down the relentless Celtic attack. The tactic backfired in the second minute when Kye Rowles did exactly that but got his timing all wrong and allowed Jota to skip clear and surge forward on the right wing to set up the opening goal. James Hill seemed the more comfortable doing it and even Toby Sibbick, the middle man of the back three, did it a couple of times.

TACTICAL OBSERVATIONS

Barrie McKay shakes hands with Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou. The hearts forward had a quiet game. Picture: Rob Casey / SNS

The 5-3-1-1 formation and game plan worked well at Celtic Park in midweek, Hearts matching the champions for an hour before falling away. But it didn’t work in the cup re-match and much of that was down to Celtic’s tempo and domination of the midfield area.

Conceding a goal inside two minutes didn’t help. Thereafter, Celtic’s intensity, sharpness and intricate one-touch passing in midfield was simply too good for the home team to cope with. Robbie Neilson explained later that he had asked Barrie McKay to do a job on Callum McGregor and stop him dictating play when Celtic were in possession. Aaron Mooy did most of the dictating instead. He was terrific.

BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT

McKay’s performances in big games is being questioned by supporters and it’s a conundrum the manager needs to solve. After another very quiet afternoon on the big stage, the gifted forward could perhaps have been substituted earlier or even on the bench at the start. Starting Devlin in midfield might have given Hearts more energy to nullify Celtic, who controlled the game in that area. It’s worth remembering, though, that the manager was without nearly a full team of senior players and didn’t reach for that as an excuse.

REF WATCH

Kevin Clancy had a relatively straightforward afternoon, dishing out yellow cards to James Hill, Kio and Nathaniel Atkinson of Hearts along with Celtic defender Cameron Carter-Vickers. McGregor should probably have been booked for a late challenge on Kio in the first half, but it made no difference to the outcome in a controversy-free cup tie.

WHAT’S NEXT

A huge game at Pittodrie on Saturday as fifth-placed Aberdeen aim to narrow the five-point gap on third-placed Hearts. The Jambos lost on their last visit in October and Aberdeen are a different proposition under interim boss Barry Robson to the team dismantled 5-0 at Tynecastle in January.