OUT ON THEIR EAR

NINE-MAN Hearts were thrown out of the Champions League on their ear last night as a Jules heist cost them Euro millions.

Scottish clubs, so often masters of their own misfortune at this level, found a new and more bizarre way to exit from this level in Athens.

Jambos midfielder Julien Brellier was sent packing in the Olympic Stadium for two first-half yellow cards -including a caution prompted by his decision to wear a diamond ear-ring.

The Jambos ended the game with nine men after Neil McCann followed Brellier down the tunnel after a terrible two-footed tackle on Vladimir Ivic after 62 minutes, but by then Gorgie dreams of a £6m Champions League jackpot were as much of a crumbling ruin as the nearby Acropolis.

AEK ran in three late goals thanks to a double from Julio Cesar either side of a Nikos Liberopoulos header but the game was effectively over as soon as Brellier walked.

The match turned on the decision of Russian ref Iouri Baskakov to send the French star to the sidelines after spotting the sparkler glistening in his lobe as he nursed a head knock on 25 minutes.

He then booked the former Inter Milan squad man for returning to the pitch too soon and followed it five minutes later with a second caution for leading with an elbow in an aerial challenge with Vladimir Ivic.

Kelly Holmes did not dash down the track on her way to double Olympic gold in 2004 any faster than Valdas Ivanauskas as he rushed to confront Baskakov at the interval.

If the referee insisted on such a strict interpretation of the laws he should have checked both dressing rooms more closely before the game - and might also have spotted AEK's Brazilian wideman Julio Cesar flashing agold ring on his finger.

Paula Radcliffe spewed her ringer in the streets around this stadium as she flopped in the marathon in 2004 and the 400 Hearts fans who had travelled to Greece came out in sympathy with her after the match.

This is the home of the Gods but they are a cruel and wicked bunch for doing this to Hearts, who battled gamely and created at least two glorious chances in the first half that might have turned the game on its head before they were reduced to 10 men.

The parachute into the first round of the UEFA Cup is some consolation at least as Celtic prepare to bank a UEFA payment from Champions League television revenue of over £4m.

Ultimately, five red cards in their last nine games - including Bruno Aguiar in the first leg - also hints at an indiscipline at Hearts that must be curbed if they are to progress further at home and abroad. The Olympic Stadium will host the Champions League final next May but Vladimir Romanov, who has declared his intention to win club football's greatest prize within three years, must take a reality check.

In actual fact, it's time for another type of cheque - one with a string of fat zeros to strengthen a squad to ensure Hearts can compete at this stage again.

The Greeks sure knew how to rub it in - not only did they show highlights of their 2-1 first leg victory at Murrayfield on big screens behind each goal, they also took us on a trip down memory lane as they showed goals from previous victories over Rangers and Hibs.

The pitch looked in perfect condition - but aMole popped up on the surface an hour before kick-off.

Ivanauskas was forced to throw striker Jamie Mole, still just 19, into the top-team fray for only his second start because no one else was fully fit.

Michal Pospisil failed a late fitness test, Mauricio Pinilla isn't yet match fit and joined Edgaras Jankauskas, still struggling to return from injury, on the bench beside virus victim Calum Elliot.

If anyone was in any doubt about the influence of Romanov on this team it was confirmed during the warm-up as he passed up his place in the VIP section to stand in the dugout watching his players being put through their paces.

There was enough of a breeze coming in off the coast as AEK kicked off but Athens still resembled a fanassisted oven as temperatures hovered in the mid-nineties.

Naturally, it tempered the aggressive, front-foot style of play favoured by the Jambos, although Mole broke from midfield in the early minutes and linked with Mikoliunas, but Hartley couldn't get any power on his shot from the edge of the box.

Cesar had filled the goalmouth with more hopeful crosses in the first leg than a spot-the-ball contestant and threatened to give Robbie Neilson another torrid time.

Neilson, red-carded against Rangers last weekend for fouls on Lee Martin, must have thought 'not again' as he was cautioned after only six minutes for a second clumsy challenge on Cesar.

Worse almost f o l l owed as Liberopoulos picked up the resulting free-kick and let rip with an effort from 20 yards that whistled a yard over.

Nevertheless, Hearts looked dangerous on the break and almost made the breakthrough in 16 minutes when Mikoliunas played in Mole down the inside-left channel. The youngster drew keeper Dionisis Chiotis and placed the ball beyond his grasp but Nikos Georgeas raced back to clear on the line.

However, the game turned for Hearts in those five fateful first-half minutes as they passed up the best chance of the game and then lost Brellier to two yellow cards.

Hartley, making his first start since the Scottish Cup Final, almost made a dream return when he stole in at the back post in 27 minutes to latch on to a McCann knock-on from a long Neilson throw but his header from eight yards was fisted brilliantly away by Chiotis.

Two minutes earlier, Brellier had been booked for returning to the field of play too quickly after being ordered to the side to remove an ear-ring the ref had spotted when the French star went down with a head knock.

He was shown a second yellow moments after Hartley's effort for leading with an elbow in a midfield clash with Vladimir Ivic.

Brellier prayed to the heavens as the red was flashed but the skies were already threatening to fall in on Hearts as he walked off with only his thoughts and a kindly arm from Cesar around his shoulder for comfort.

AEK started the second half the way they had finished the first and Georgeas and Ivic both came close to netting before Hartley's legs gave out and he was replaced by Jankauskas.

Hearts were reduced to nine men in 62 minutes when McCann lost possession at the edge of the area and tried to win it back with a two-footed lunge on Ivic.

This time, the decision was merited and it became a case of trying to keep the game as close as possible as even the most fervent Jambo knew the hopes of playing the likes of Chelsea, Barcelona and Bayern Munich later in the season had gone.

Hearts held out until 12 minutes from time whenMikoliunas bundled over Vasilis Lakis in the box and Cesar sent Gordon the wrong way from the spot.

AEK doubled their advantage eight minutes from time when sub Daniel Tozser threw over an inviting cross from the left and Liberopoulos nodded past Gordon at the back post.

Dangerman Cesar sealed the lid on a miserable night when he broke away with five minutes left and fired a shot into the corner of the net from 16 yards.

Taken from the Daily Record