Braga 2 Hearts 2 (Agg: 3-5)

The Tynecastle side headed into the second leg with a 3-1 win over Braga from the first game a couple of weeks ago but they were left reeling when Joao Tomas put the home side ahead.

But a double from Mark de Vries ensured Craig Levein's men remained on track to extend their European run and a late goal from Jaime proved to be nothing more than a consolation goal for Braga.

This game was almost in danger of becoming overshadowed by events off the field after it emerged that chief executive Chris Robinson was set to sell his shares to Lithuanian banker Vladimir Romanov.

Robinson opted not to fly out with the team on Wednesday, prompting speculation he had stayed behind in Edinburgh to complete the deal - and the sale was confirmed in a statement to the Stock Exchange early this morning.

The unpopular chief executive has long been the target of frustration by Hearts supporters for his plans to sell Tynecastle stadium to a property developer to ease the club's massive debts.

That has led to calls for Robinson's resignation and their wish was granted on Thursday when he revealed he would quit the post once the sale of his shares was complete.

He arrived in Portugal in enough time to take his place in the stand at the impressive Estadio Municipal de Braga - but by then the attention had turned to events on the field.

Hearts headed into the game with a 3-1 win from the first leg and head coach Craig Levein produced a couple of trump cards when it was revealed that de Vries had taken a painkilling injection to take part in the game despite being ruled out the day before.

Another surprise inclusion was Ramon Pereira - expected to be sidelined with an ankle injury - who took a place on the bench.

Braga who got off to the best start and they left Hearts reeling after 13 minutes when Tomas grabbed the opening goal.

Wender's cross found Tomas at the back post and he flicked over Craig Gordon's head from just a few yards out.

Braga were clearly boosted by the goal but Hearts refused to become despondent and went in search of a goal of their own in the hope of restoring a comfortable aggregate lead again.

Fortunately for them, their hard work quickly paid off when de Vries grabbed the equaliser on the night after 27 minutes.

The decision to gamble on the big Dutchman paid off when he collected a long ball from Gordon before surging past defender Paulo Jorge. He nipped into the box before trying to chip the ball over the Braga goalkeeper.

But Paulo Santos kicked the ball straight off de Vries in an attempt to clear the danger, allowing the player to send the ball into the back of the net in off the inside of the post.

Hearts surged into the lead just two minutes after the restart.

De Vries proved to be the danger man again when he tried his luck with an opportunist drive from just outside the area and the shot took a slight deflection past the Braga goalkeeper and into the back of the net.

Braga had warned ahead of the first leg that they would be willing to use any tactics to win their place in the group stages and that became apparent when Wender claimed he had been brought down in the box by Patrick Kisnorbo - but his appeals failed to bring the penalty he was hoping for.

The Portuguese side returned to more conventional means of trying to find the back of the net when Tomas tested the Hearts goalkeeper with a close-range header - but Gordon never looked troubled.

Only a quick reaction from Robbie Neilson prevented Braga grabbing a second goal with 15 minutes to go when he hooked Cesinha's shot off the line - but the Portuguese side found the back of the net seconds later when Jaime bundled the ball over the line.

He could have added to his own tally a few minutes later when he bulleted a shot at goal only for the long-range effort to take a deflection and fall just wide of the target.

But, by then, there was no real chance of Braga preventing Hearts booking their place in the group stages of the UEFA Cup.

Teams

Braga Paulo Santos, Paulo Jorge, Nem, Jorge Luiz, Paulo Sergio, Joao Tomas, Jaime, Kenedy (Castanheira 44), Wender (Cesinha 68), Abel (Baha 60), Vandinho.

Subs Not Used: Marco, Barroso, Nunes, Costa.

Booked: Kenedy, Joao Tomas.

Goals: Joao Tomas 12, Jaime 77.

Hearts Gordon, Maybury, Webster, Pressley, Kisnorbo, McAllister, Neilson, Stamp (Pereira 84), Hartley, MacFarlane, de Vries (McKenna 78).

Subs Not Used: Moilanen, Wyness, Hamill, Berra, Stewart.

Booked: McAllister, Stamp, de Vries, MacFarlane.

Goals: de Vries 27, 47.

Att: 13,007

Ref: Anton Stredak (Slovakia).

Taken from sportinglife.com