Hearts 0-1 Kilmarnock: Killie claim win at Tynecastle with Chris Burke header
- Published
Highlights: Heart of Midlothian 0-1 Kilmarnock
Hearts remain just two points off the bottom of the Scottish Premiership after slumping to a 1-0 home defeat by Kilmarnock.
Chris Burke's goal condemned Craig Levein's side to their fourth defeat of the campaign, leaving them with just six points.
It means Hearts have now not won at home in the league in more than six months.
Kilmarnock move up to sixth in the standings.
Further frustrating at Tynecastle
The big talking point was all about team selection at the start of the game.
No Uche Ikpeazu because of injury meant Hearts had no real orthodox striker, with Ryotaro Meshino and Sean Clare furthest forward. However, neither really looked like they had the goal instinct required.
The best chance for the home side would fall to a midfielder. Glenn Whelan has been one of the few shining lights for Hearts this season but he wasted a golden opportunity from a short corner. Set up perfectly by Clare, the Republic of Ireland international had a clear shot at goal from eight yards out but blazed the ball high over the bar.
There had been selection problems for Kilmarnock, too. Before the match, Angelo Alessio revealed Osman Sow would be out for up to six weeks with an ankle injury. Thankfully for Kilmarnock, Eamonn Brophy was fit enough to lead the line.
But again it would be midfielders to the fore. First an audacious volley from Gary Dicker, angled from the edge of the penalty area, whistled narrowly past the top corner.
But better was to come before the first half was out, Niko Hamalainen with a perfect cross from the left on to the head of Burke. The effort from the veteran former Scotland international took a deflection off Jake Mulraney before bulging the net, much to the delight of the noisy Kilmarnock away support.
Hearts changed things up in the second half. They went to a back four instead of a back three, and brought an orthodox striker onto the field in the shape of Steven MacLean for midfielder Andy Irving.
The home side looked more dangerous, Meshino with an effort from 20 yards albeit comfortably saved by Laurentiu Branescu. Then a ball into the box found Michael Smith, but the defender failed to capitalise on his opportunity.
This was fast turning into another frustrating watch for the Hearts faithful. Too often the end product was not good enough, with passes in the final third not finding their destination. Meshino found space at the edge of the box and fired a rasping effort which just cleared the bar as Hearts tried to turn up the pressure in the final 10 minutes.
But Kilmarnock remained a threat with the electric pace of Liam Millar down the left. He played the ball into the path of Dom Thomas, but he failed to find the target.
Oliver Bozanic had a header which cleared the bar and from a corner Clevid Dikamona fired wide late on, which all rather summed Hearts up - off target. Another frustrating watch for the Gorgie fans.
MacLean would have the ball in the net near the final whistle but referee Alan Muir had spotted a foul in the build-up. There were also shouts for handball in the box as the Hearts players appealed for a penalty, but again there was nothing doing from the officials.
The derby win followed up by a point away at St Mirren should have been the foundations of a feel-good factor, but home form is a huge concern as Hearts continue to underperform in the Premiership. Is it the pressure of playing in front of their home crowd? Is it the injuries? Is it something else? There will be plenty of Hearts fans looking at Levein to provide answers again.
Kilmarnock have turned their form around under new manager Angelo Alessio.
Man of the match - Chris Burke
It might not be his goal - we'll clear that up on Sportscene on Sunday night - but Chris Burke rolled back the years again.
Always a menace on the right-hand side, the 35-year-old was in the penalty area at the right time to make all the difference. But even in defensive situations he exhibited a calmness when Kilmarnock found themselves under pressure.
He will be 36 in a couple of months' time, but appears to have plenty of football left in the tank.
'I'm more angry than frustrated' - reaction
Hearts manager Craig Levein: "I'm more angry than frustrated. I said to the players after the game that we have a load of players coming back from injury very soon and I don't want anybody to be knocking on my door and asking why they're not playing because currently I wouldn't say they're not trying but they need to do more. I think we need to dig in harder.
"In a game like that today we had the majority of play and had the best chances but I felt we could have done more. That's a recurring theme. Some of them won't be playing once people come back from injury."
Kilmarnock manager Angelo Alessio: "I'm very happy because in some games we've played well but didn't win. Today we won. Of course, at the end of the game we were under pressure but that's football. I'm very happy because the team played with good spirit and I think we deserved it at the end of the game.
"We were much better in the first half. I expected it in the second half because I knew Hearts would push more. A lot of balls in to the box and we had the possibility of drawing the game from the corner when [Clevid] Dikamona headed the ball wide."