Capital gains as Hearts and Hibs seal European progress on thrilling night
Hearts and Hibs both progressed to the play-off rounds of the Europa Conference League after an exhilarating night of football for the two capital clubs.
The Jambos overturned a first-leg deficit to overcome Rosenborg 4-3 on aggregate at a packed Tynecastle, while the Hibees drew 2-2 in Luzern to progress past the Swiss club 5-3 over the two ties.
Lee Johnson's Easter Road outfit have now landed a plum draw in the play-offs against English Premier League giants Aston Villa. Captained by current Scottish internationalist and former Hibs midfielder John Mcginn, Villa are due to travel to Edinburgh next week before the return leg in Birmingham on Thursday, August 31. Elie Youan and Martin Boyle were the heroes for Hibs in Switzerland with their goals despite Luzern leading 2-1 at one stage.
Hearts’ reward for getting past the Norwegians is a clash against PAOK, as the Greek side triumphed 3-0 in Thessaloniki to ease past Hajduk Split by the same score on aggregate. The first leg of that tie will be at Tynecastle next week, with the return match at the Toumba Stadium a week later. Cammy Devlin netted twice for the Gorgie outfit, who had trailed very early on before Lawrence Shankland levelled the match on the night.
Uefa is expected to confirm in the next 24 hours the exact dates for the first legs, with the governing body unlikely to sanction both matches taking place in Edinburgh on the traditional Thursday slot for a Europa Conference League tie. It is believed the Hibsvilla game will be played on Wednesday instead.
Meanwhile, Aberdeen have discovered their Europa League play-off opponents following last night's third qualifying round. Barry Robson’s men will take on BK Hacken of Sweden after they were comfortable 8-1 aggregate winners over Zalgiris Vilnius. Leading 3-1 from the first leg in Lithuania, the Allsvenskan side left the outcome of the tie in no doubt with a 5-0 triumph in Gothenburg.
The first leg will be played in Sweden next Thursday, with the return leg at Pittodrie on August 31. The winner of that tie will progress to the knockout stages of the Europa League, while the losers will drop into the pool phase of the Europa Conference League.
More than three decades since Hearts last welcomed European opposition to Tynecastle and managed to successfully overhaul a firstleg deficit, there was a banner unfurled by the Gorgie Ultras suggesting that this was the night for a new generation of Hearts players to step up on the European stage.
If the fans believed they were up to the task then so did the players. And they backed that up with a performance that proved it.
In their minds, they had the momentum after a strong finish in Norway, when a late Lawrence Shankland goal had reduced the deficit. But there was a huge blow to Hearts’ ambitions within the first five minutes last night, when the former St Mirren player Isak Thorvaldsson drew first blood as the hosts conceded a messy opening goal.
Zander Clark managed to halt the first header but after the ball bobbled about in the congested box, Clark couldn’t stop it squirming over the line.
Under the Tynecastle lights, with the home crowd in full voice, that kind of start might have killed the mood but instead, the players and the fans stayed focused on the job at hand and they managed to hit the reset button just seven minutes later when captain Shankland, who remains linked with Saudi Arabian suitors, showed where his priorities lie.
Chasing down a long ball over the top, he showed why he has such a prolific goal return, chipping the keeper to level the score on the night and take Hearts back to within one goal of cancelling out Rosenborg’s aggregate lead.
When a side is seeking goals, it is no bad thing to have the likes of Shankland and the returning Liam Boyce in the line up. Boyce was making his first competitive start since August last year and he was a man on a mission. The Northern Irishman is back following a lengthy period out with a knee injury and he gave an impressive showing of industry, street smarts and quality link-up play as he joined the high press and tried to carve out the openings Hearts needed to take them through to a meeting with PAOK.
The early goal had impeded them but, having restored parity, Hearts returned to their original tactics of taking the game to Rosenborg. It made for an open match as the visitors posed a threat on the counter-attack – but Hearts had a potency and a desire that could not be contained.
They had to clear off the line and Clark pulled off a smart save in stoppage time but Hearts also forced saves, skimmed the bar and were deniedbythewoodworkbefore Cammy Devlin stepped up.
Paired with young Aidan Denholm in the middle of the park, Devlin was integral to the victory, weighing in with a double he will never forget.
Boyce did the hard work in the 50th minute but when his effortwasstoppedtheweesocceroo followed in and levelled the tie. And his trademark tenacity paid off handsomely in injury time as his first shot was blocked but he stayed calm and, having another dig, drilled home the winner.
Shankland, who remains linked with Saudi Arabian suitors, showed where his priorities lie