MATCH REPORT: HEARTS 3-0 SUNDERLAND.

In Craig Gordon’s testimonial match, Hearts defeated Premier League side Sunderland 3-0 at Tynecastle Park.

On a day commemorating the career and achievements of a Scottish football legend, Claudio Braga’s first-half header was followed by second-half strikes from Lawrence Shankland and Alexandros Kyziridis in a dominant performance by the men in maroon.

Hearts now have an undefeated record in pre-season and the Premier Sports Cup group stage, ahead of their opening day match against Aberdeen on August 4th.

Derek McInnes made changes to the side that defeated Dumbarton last time out, with Craig Gordon in goal, Oisin McEntee, Cammy Devlin, and Calem Nieuwenhof in the middle, and Lawrence Shankland and Claudio Braga up front. At the walk-out, both teams formed a guard of honour for Craig, who was substituted inside the first minute due to a neck injury that had limited his appearances in pre-season, and was greeted warmly by both sets of supporters. Sunderland created the first chance after eight minutes, when Enzo Le Fee carried the ball to the edge of the box and unleashed a long-range effort that deflected off a maroon shirt and into Zander Clark’s gloves.

The Jambos claimed the lead after 11 minutes. Oisin McEntee superbly brushed Niall Huggins off the ball, headed for the byline and whipped a fine ball across goal, with Claudio Braga popping up with a smashing header to make it 1-0.

Hearts began to dominate possession for the next ten minutes, but were unable to break through on goal; Braga’s sidefooted effort down Simon Moore’s throat after 19 minutes was the only notable opportunity.

The rest of the half was uneventful, with neither side able to get their foot on the ball and make things happen – though Hearts continued to have the advantage in possession.

HT: Heart of Midlothian 1-0 Sunderland.

Following the break, Michael Steinwender and James Wilson were introduced, with the latter having an immediate impact on proceedings.

The Scotland international ran a close race with Dan Ballard, but the red and white shirt blocked his shot before he could trouble Simon Moore in the Mackem goal.

Moments later, the Jambos got close again. Adam Forrester’s good running brought the ball to Lawrence Shankland’s plate inside the box, and the forward’s clean swipe at goal went just past the post. Hearts were aggressive and on the front foot, coming close again around the hour mark.

Oisin McEntee’s clearance up the park caused a calamitous mix-up in the Sunderland defence, allowing James Wilson to break on goal before his attempt went wide. All signs pointed to a second, which finally arrived after 62 minutes.

Blair Spittal threaded the ball across the park to a waiting Lawrence Shankland on the edge of the box, whose spectacular shot deflected into the Sunderland net.

Hearts were on fire by then, and they nearly added a third after 75 minutes when Alan Forrest cut inside on his left and curled towards goal, but a deflection off a red and white shirt denied him a goal. With only five minutes remaining, Hearts scored a third goal in bizarre circumstances.

A clumsy pass across goal from Noah Sadiki saw the ball zipped straight to the feet of Alexandros Kyziridis in acres of space, allowing the Greek winger a simple tap in to send Hearts home with an impressive victory.

Gordon (1′), Kent (Steinwender 45′), Halkett, Nieuwenhof (Spittal 22′) (Forrest 74′), Shankland (Kabangu 74′), Braga (Wilson 45′), Devlin (Dhanda 90′), Milne (Kingsley 74′), Findlay, McEntee (Kartum 85′), Forrester (Kyziridis 63′).

Subs include Clark, Fulton, Kingsley, Kabangu, Steinwender, Spittal, Forrest, Dhanda, Wilson, Kartum, Kerjota, Musa, Vargas, and Kyziridis.

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