It was a night of disappointment for Hearts as they crashed out of the Europa League despite dominating proceedings against Zurich.
Robbie Neilson's team trailed from the first leg and knew they needed a big performance in front of an expectant home crowd to advance past the Swiss champions. For the most part they did that, and yet it still wasn't enough as Jorge Grant's red card for simulation proved costly.
They dominated the first 45 with Liam Boyce, Lawrence Shankland and Alan Forrest all looking dangerous in an attacking lineup from Neilson. But they couldn't find a way through a resilient visiting back line that seemed to take more confidence from every attack they repelled.
If they were holding out for a moment of genius or a silly mistake to see them through, they got the latter. Grant went down in the box screaming for a penalty shortly before the half-hour mark, but a gutsy call from the referee saw him shown a second yellow card instead and he walked.
It was always going to be difficult for Hearts from there and so it proved. Their fate was virtually sealed on 80 minutes when Fabian Rohner struck, sending Hearts crashing into tomorrow's Conference League draw.
Here is Record Sport's 3 talking points.
Classy Cammy
The fact Ange Postecoglou is a big fan of Hearts midfielder Cammy Devlin tells you all about his quality. But the little Aussie proved it on the European stage last night with an outstanding display for the Jambos.
Every player in maroon showed they can cut it at this level by dominating Zurich at Tynecastle for long spells in the game - but Devlin was the star man. Right from the off, he set the tempo for Robbie Neilson’s side in their engine room.
His positioning was terrific, as he read the game brilliantly from that deep lying midfield role. In a red hot atmosphere, he showed real composure on the ball and, crucially, he was tenacious in stopping any potential Zurich counter attacks.
Even when the Jambos were reduced to 10 men, he was always available to team-mates for a pass. Everyone could see Devlin was a good player last season when he arrived in Gorgie from Oz. But his performance against the Swiss champions took it up a notch and anyone watching couldn’t fail to be impressed.
Hearty performance
Irrespective of whether Hearts were going to end up in the Europa League or Europa Conference League, this display against Zurich should give them plenty of encouragement for the rest of their Euro campaign. For long spells in the game last night - especially before Jorge Grant’s red card - they made the Swiss champions look like minnows by being excellent in and out of possession.
Robbie Neilson’s side kept a high line, played on the front foot and went for the jugular, which might have left them open to break-aways. But the Jambos were so well organised and their shape allowed them to exert real pressure on Zurich from the off.
In the first half, they should have been two goals up - the only negative in that 45 minutes was their failure to hit the back of the net. When they were reduced to 10 men, the game changed in favour of the Swiss.
But the way Hearts controlled a huge chunk of it bodes well for them in Europe this season. Neilson now knows they can go toe-to-toe with a good level of opposition and dominate proceedings at home. With the Tynecastle backing they’ll fancy themselves against any Conference League opponent.
Taken for Granted
Jorge Grant's sending off effectively killed off Hearts’ genuine hopes of turning the tie around because until that point they were well on top. And the midfielder will surely regret the two bookings that left his team-mates a man down?
Grant’s first yellow card might have been harsh but he has to ask himself if he really needed to make that slide tackle right in front of the referee. And the second for diving to try and win a penalty also looked unnecessary.
He definitely got clipped in the box but the truth is, Grant was already on his way down anticipating the challenge. That’s what made the referee’s mind up to send him packing and the former Peterborough man didn’t have too many complaints as he trudged off the Tynecastle pitch.
That left Hearts with a mountain to climb and they were to rue missed chances in the early stages of the game. And as well as Grant’s red card, that will be what frustrated the manager. Of course, Liam Boyce should have scored with a header from close range and Alan Forrest also failed to convert an opportunity at the back post.
But apart from that? They didn’t really cut Zurich open and create gilt-edged chances, particularly for main goal-getter Lawrence Shankland who was starved of quality service. And that was made even more difficult when Grant was given his marching orders.
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