Action man Ikpeazu gives Hearts reason to believe
Action man Ikpeazu is Gorgie hero after bulldozing Dons into submission
THE celebration was terrifying enough. The marauding run to the bench, the crazed grabs for hugs with his coaching staff.
Thumping that ripped chest with his fist and staring wild eyes at Tony Docherty and Derek McInnes in the opposition dugout.
For Uche Ikpeazu, this looked as much an explosive release of pent-up anger and frustration as it did joy at netting a comeback winner for Hearts.
Taking the season as a whole, this was his first league goal since August 25 in a maiden campaign in Scotland blighted by a complex foot injury that ruled him out four months.
On the day itself, where do you start? The gruelling battles with Aberdeen central defenders Scott McKenna and Andy Considine, blazing wide of an open goal and being harshly booked by referee John Beaton for simulation.
Tynecastle simmered with frustration and Ikpeazu — for all his great work — could just as well have been singled out for blame for his glaring miss had Hearts tumbled further down the top six.
As raw a 24-year-old striker as you will ever see, the Englishman is all heart, however, and his tireless efforts and honest toil for his team conjured a goal to savour 13 minutes from time.
Hearing from a pumped-up Ikpeazu about his day to remember would have offered quite the tale.
However, he may not have been capable of recalling much about how his action ended last night.
Within seconds of tailing off his animated celebrations, he was floored in a clash with Dominic Ball and appeared to suffer concussion as his head crashed off the turf.
His afternoon in the spotlight ended on a stretcher, given a hero’s farewell from a home crowd hoping for a kind diagnosis to emerge on Ikpeazu in the next 24 hours.
For next up is Rangers at Ibrox on Wednesday before an Edinburgh derby rounds off the pre-split slate and leads Hearts into a Scottish Cup semi-final against Inverness.
This was a vital victory not only for refusing to drop into the sixth spot and drift behind Aberdeen and their city rivals, but psychologically after more wounding injury news.
The bulletin on Ben Garuccio’s proposed 10-month absence was just the latest in a litany of serious blows for Heart this season.
Tynecastle was the venue for one of Aberdeen’s three away defeats this season, a 2-1 reverse that saw Hearts maintain a three-point lead at the top of the table in October.
With key players out long term, including Ikpeazu, they have been dogged by dips in form since, but have clung on in there, two points behind the Dons now and secure in the top half.
Aberdeen took a 16th-minute lead after gaining enough territorial advantage in a combative opening period to force their hosts back into defending a couple of corner kicks.
From their second, Sam Cosgrove’s header bounced off the crossbar, back into play and left Zdenek Zlamal scrambling to get back to his feet to recover.
Connor McLennan was alert, agile and aggressive enough to rise above Christophe Berra and Arnaud Djoum to head the ball into the empty net.
The bruising, focal points of either attack — Ikpeazu and Cosgrove — were the ones to watch.
The Dons striker caught Berra with an elbow to earn a caution and was denied by Zlamal’s fingertips.
The action involving Ikpeazu was gripping, literally so when McKenna, Considine and he grasped at each other’s jerseys.
McLennan was a threat for the Dons coming in from wide, while Lewis Ferguson and Graeme Shinnie were dominant in the first half.
All that changed after the break. A ferocious opening from Hearts set the tone but not before that shocking miss from Ikpeazu.
Joe Lewis fouled Jamie Brandon but didn’t deal with the ball when coming to the edge of his penalty box to swipe at Berra’s long punt.
An empty net was presented for Ikpeazu to aim at as the ball dropped kindly for him. Perhaps he was waiting for the penalty award, yet that would be a poor excuse for tamely side-footing his shot wide.
Crucially, Tynecastle was lifted rather than deflated and Aberdeen failed to react accordingly. A scything run through the centre by Jake Mulraney was halted by a trip from Considine in the penalty box. Sean Clare coolly sent Lewis the wrong way with his spot-kick.
He should have been given another after Ikpeazu was booked for a dive as he went round Lewis.
The keeper pleaded his innocence — and Beaton bought it, carding the English striker when it appeared he had been clipped.
But Ikpeazu was not to be denied his deserved goal. Considine missed Conor Shaughnessy’s ball over the top and Ikpeazu brushed off McKenna before picking his spot in the net with a superb finish.