PREMIERSHIP LIVE
BRITISH and Commonwealth bantamweight champ Lee McGregor looked on as Hearts failed to lay a glove on Celtic.
The Jambos lacked punch as they slipped to a 2-0 defeat under new cornerman Daniel Stendel.
They weren’t found wanting for fight or aggression, at least in the early rounds.
But Celtic were able to go toe to toe with them before taking advantage of a questionable defence and taking them out.
The Smiths was an appropriate choice of pre-match music over the PA system, aptly capturing the mood of the Jambos who dragged themselves along given the slump their team find themselves in.
Just over 14,000 of them were there for an encounter that most had the hosts as rank outsiders to even take a draw from.
Tynecastle under the lights wold normally be an occasion the Old Firm approach with an air of caution.
Last season, Celtic required a stoppage-time Odsonne Edouard winner to grab the victory.
No late sucker-punch was needed this time. After Ryan Christie landed the first blow on 27 minutes, there was a sense of inevitability about the outcome.
Olivier Ntcham’s second after a swift counter-attack left Hearts needing a knockout with over half the game to go.
By the time McGregor was on the Tynecastle turf at half-time proudly displaying his belts, the fight had gone from what had been a raucous home support.
That most of their positivity came after Celtic players lumped the ball out of play says a lot about how much danger Neil Lennon’s men were ever really in.
The margin of victory probably should have been wider.
But wastefulness from the visitors and good goalkeeping from Joel Pereira meant it wasn’t a heavier beating.
There’s a nervousness about Hearts at both ends of the pitch that can only be removed by rebuilding confidence, which has taken a battering recently.
Stendel himself admitted the only way to do that is by getting results. Until that happens, they’re stuck in a vicious cycle.
By contrast, Celtic have their eyes on the prize. With the Europa League in hibernation over the winter until February and the crucial festive fixtures now upon us, this could be a chance for them to make a real title statement.
A points victory over Rangers by the time the season ends is all that matters, but they moved ahead on the scorecards by opening up a five point lead over