The Hearts positive numbers amid a bleak European situation

Dig beneath the scoreline and there are some positives to uncover from Hearts’ 4-0 Champions League qualifying defeat at Sturm Graz. A total of 19 shots at goal from 67 per cent possession, five big chances created and 37 touches inside the opposition penalty box suggests the Tynecastle side carried plenty attacking intent in Austria. Which they certainly did.

Creating opportunities wasn’t a major problem. Converting them was. Preventing Sturm scoring also proved difficult as Hearts suffered due to poor defending. New manager Wouter Vrancken focuses heavily on attacking and, as such, his team offered some encouragement between middle and front despite the heavy defeat in the first leg of their second qualifying round tie.

For context, Sturm managed 20 shots at goal, 33 per cent possession, five big chances created and only 28 touches inside the Hearts penalty box. The hosts also completed 144 accurate passes during the game [65 per cent of those they attempted], while the Scots made 356 accurate passes [80 per cent of those they attempted]. If the 4-0 scoreline therefore looks slightly skewed, it is because Sturm were infinitely more clinical with their scoring opportunities.

Statistics are incidental, for the final scoreline is all that counts, and no-one need remind Hearts of that fact. However, midfielder Blair Spittal is determined to remain upbeat ahead of Tuesday’s second leg between the clubs at Tynecastle. He is convinced that the four-goal deficit is not insurmountable in spite of the bleak situation, and explained why. “In the first half, we create so many chances. We just don't take them. At this level, if you don't take them you're going to get punished,” he said. “I think it's nine minutes, the three goals we lost in the second half. It's just mental.

“At that point you've got to try and gain a bit of control in the game. We don't do it, we probably make a few wrong decisions and ultimately they catch us on the break a couple of times and take their chances. So fair play to Sturm Graz, but I’d say on the balance of play, going into next week, it’s hard to say what to expect really.

“It’s just what we did in the two boxes, definitely. Because in the first half we create that many chances and we don't take them. But at the same time, at the other end, we don't keep them out. Next week will be interesting. We've got to make sure we get a fast start. I don't think the tie is over based on how we played at times in the first half.

“It's easy to say for people at home that maybe didn't watch the game and will see the 4-0 scoreline. They think we’ve probably taken a bit of a doing, but it really didn't feel like that way in the pitch. We were competing. To be honest, it felt like it was just a tale of missed chances and you get punished at the other end.”

Watching Hearts create numerous opportunities during the first half - the two most obvious were squandered by Landry Kabore and Alexandros Kyziridis - left Spittal feeling hopeful at the interval. “Yeah, definitely. The first half showed that. I actually felt quite comfortable,” he said. “There were a few moments where they did create chances, hit the post and set-plays caused us a wee bit of a problem. In open play, we created so many chances and it caused them a lot of bother. There were a lot of runs in behind and the boys up front did well, but we never took our chances and that's what happens.”

The outlook for next week is simple: Hearts need to start with energy, aggression, and score quickly to have any hope at all of unsettling Sturm and getting themselves back into this tie. If not, they will drop into the Europa League third qualifying round and meet the winner of the tie between St Gallen and Benfica. Coming up against the Portuguese giants, as looks likely given they are strong favourites, would be another daunting assignment for the Edinburgh club.

“Yeah. On Tuesday night, they scored after four minutes but we have a chance just before it,” Spittal recalled of the Sturm first leg. “You're thinking: ‘Okay, here we go.’ It’s just momentum. It's just a massive thing in football. When their tails are up, they manage to take their chances.”

There is a determination within the Tynecastle squad to learn from what happened inside the Liebenauer Stadium. “I think so,” agreed Spittal. “I think in that nine-minute period where we conceded three, we went away from what we'd done in training. We started going a wee bit, not rogue, but away from what we had been doing to hurt them. Like I say, we've probably done things a wee bit too quick in a few certain moments instead of just calming the game down.

“Obviously, this level is hard when you've got a certain amount of time to take throw-ins and to kick when the goalie's got the ball in his hand. You're in a rush to play it. At that moment, it's important that we put our foot on the ball and try not to rush things. I thought we'd done that a wee bit.”