YOU'VE LEFT US IN RUINS

HEARTS coach Valdas Ivanauskas last night blasted referee Nicolai Vollquartz for the red card that could cost his club Champions League millions.

Jambos boss Valdas Ivanauskas was irate after Bruno Aguiar's sending off.

The Jambos' hopes of going into the group stage of world football 's most lucrative competition are hanging by a thread after a dramatic late collapse at Murrayfield following the sending-off of Bruno Aguiar.

Saulius Mikoliunas gave Hearts a lead they scarcely deserved in the second half against AEK Athens but Pantelis Kapentanos snatched an equaliser in the last minutes of regulation time before Nikolaos Lymperopolous netted a deflected injury-time winner.

The only Scots with smiles on their faces last night were the accountants at Celtic who stand to take all the TV cash earmarked for our Champions League sides - around £4million.

Hearts were raging at the Aguiar red card for a second bookable offence shortly after going 1-0 up. Ivanauskas was left in the dark amid claims Aguiar was penalised for a tackle as Martin Pautasso tangled with Neil McCann. It was suggested later the Portuguese midfielder saw red for throwing the ball away after Vollquartz had given a free-kick.

Ivanauskas said: "I have been involved in a lot of European games and if the ref says it's red it's red but for me his decision was a mistake.

"Had he not made this mistake we would have won. The first card was understandable but there was no tackle to merit a second yellow. Bruno is angry and says the tackle was nothing.

"After the sending-off it wasn't easy. The other players are angry, especially regarding the performances in the last four minutes as they had worked so hard until then.

"It was a typical European match at high tempo and the Greeks are a solid, experienced team. But after we scored we also had the chance of a second.

"We must believe we can go to Athens and win but it's going to be very difficult."

Ivanauskas and AEK manager Lorenzo Serra Ferrer played down talk of a bust-up as they exchanged words at full-time.

Serra Ferrer reckons it would have been a travesty had his side come away with nothing.

He said: "We had 13 or 14 corners and came close to scoring 10 or 12 times. From the first minute to the last we were looking to score.

"But we don't think this tie is over. There are 90 minutes to play and we must respect Hearts."

Taken from the Daily Record