Sportscene pundit can’t believe what happened to Lawrence Shankland in Hearts loss vs Hibernian: ‘Unbelievable’
Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts were stunned by Hibernian in the Edinburgh derby on Saturday.
Hibernian beat Hearts 3-2, with the home side holding on for the three points despite an attempted late comeback from Derek McInnes‘ side.
Goals from Jamie McGrath, Josh Campbell and Kieron Bowie put Hibs into a commanding lead, before Lawrence Shankland and Cameron Devlin scored in the closing stages to reduce the deficit.
Ryan Stevenson could not believe what he was seeing from Hearts, who have been dealt a big blow to their title hopes.
After Celtic beat Livingston 4-2 on Saturday, the gap is now just three points at the top of the Scottish Premiership, with the chasers having a game in hand.
Leanne Crichton stunned by late moment in Hibernian vs Hearts
Much of the discussion in the opening minutes of the game was about Hibernian’s pyrotechnic display impeding the view of the fans and the TV cameras.
But through the smoke emerged McGrath, who prodded home a superb finish to give the home side the lead after just three minutes.
And just before half-time, the goal-scorer would turn provider, floating in a lovely cross for the head of Campbell to double the advantage.
| Hibernian | Match stats | Hearts |
| 34% | Possession | 66% |
| 12 | Shots | 16 |
| 7 | On target | 7 |
| 1.43 | Expected goals (xG) | 1.51 |
| 3 | Corners | 8 |
Kieron Bowie’s stunning finish after the break would send Easter Road into raptures, but Hearts were not down and out yet.
Shankland restored some hope with a powerful header, before Devlin capitalised on a mistake from Raphael Sallinger to give the visitors a real chance.
In stoppage time, however, the Austrian goalkeeper would redeem himself with a stunning save to deny Shankland and keep Hibs ahead.
Speaking about the moment to BBC Sportscene on Saturday, Leanne Crichton said: “That’s an unbelievable stop for Sallinger.
“At that point in the game, he’s made the error, Devlin follows up for the second goal but the reactions to keep that one out. You can see Shankland’s reaction, he was off and celebrating, absolutely.”
Derek McInnes left fuming as Hearts lack ‘basics’
Hearts have enjoyed a dream season so far, but Saturday’s loss threatens to topple their title challenge.
Celtic look to have finally found their feet under the guidance of Wilfried Nancy, and are now closing in on the Scottish Premiership leaders.
Speaking after the game, McInnes lambasted his side for their performance.
“We’ve had loads of plaudits this season about how we play, the goals we score, the individual element of our team, but we don’t do the basics well enough today,” he said.
“It’s as simple as that. You can look at team selection, you can look at all the rest of it, but we don’t stop a switch of play, we don’t stop a cross and we don’t match a run.”
The visit of Livingston is up next for Hearts, with each and every match beginning to feel absolutely crucial.