Celtic draw comfort in epic point against Hearts

* Aguiar 32

Celtic 1

* Vennegoor of Hesselink 1

* Ewan Murray at Tynecastle
* The Observer, Saturday 11 April 2009

Even in this most keenly fought title race, Celtic will consider a point at Tynecastle as one gained rather than two dropped.

In what was in itself a firm counter-argument to the theory that lunchtime kick-offs lack the spark of games played later in the day, Hearts and the defending Premier League champions supplied one of the most epic encounters of the season. Lit up by the visitors' opener within 25 seconds, both teams were still charging into tackles in the dying moments when energy levels had understandably been sapped.

Afterwards Gordon Strachan said: "We're going to have a say in the championship, we determine where we go, not Hearts. You can only ask the fellows to perform and it might be the biggest point of the season, you never know."

Strachan had obviously decided a bullish opening is the way to deal with a trip to one of the most hazardous venues in Scotland. The last time Celtic ventured into Edinburgh's West End, they went two goals ahead within 20 minutes. From there, Hearts had no reply, but Csaba Laszlo's team are made of sterner stuff these days.

They responded in rousing fashion to Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink's volley and, after Bruno Aguiar restored parity, were unfortunate not to be ahead by the interval. Two surprises emerged thereafter: there were no further goals and the early booking to Stephen McManus remained the only one of the 90 minutes.

Strachan had been boosted by Scott Brown declaring himself fit before kick-off, the midfielder's industry always likely to be a key component in this game. Yet the Scotland international was outshone by a player whose career continues to sway between the wonderful and the wasteful – one-time Manchester United man Michael Stewart was easily the most impressive player on show.

Neither Brown nor Stewart had even touched the ball by the time Vennegoor of Hesselink supplied the quickest goal of the season. Hearts were ­sluggish in dealing with an Aiden McGeady cross that eventually fell to Andreas Hinkel on the right flank. While Vennegoor of ­Hesselink did well to connect with a ­volley from the German's pass, the home goalkeeper, Janos Balogh, was woefully slow in attempting to make a save.

"Sometimes you can score too early and let the opposition have a good go at you," Strachan said afterwards. Within nine minutes of the opening goal, the hosts had forced four corners. "That goal was like giving Celtic a chocolate Easter egg," Laszlo said.

The Celtic's manager's subsequent assertions that his team had played a match at the "land of the giants" was however disingenuous. Some of Hearts' football, particularly in the first-half, was a joy to behold, with Aguiar's free-kick a candidate for goal of the season.

Stewart had already been denied what seemed a legitimate penalty claim from a Glenn Loovens foul by the time Gary Caldwell was penalised for a foul on the Hearts midfielder, 30 yards out. Aguiar promptly curled the set-play home, his sixth goal of the campaign. Those watching in Govan, needless to say, would have celebrated the equaliser almost as wildly as the majority at Tynecastle. Strachan withdrew his captain, McManus, at the break in order to protect a recurring ankle injury. "He can play when 80% or 90% fit," the manager said, "but not at 50%. Sometimes he is too brave for his own good."

Marius Zaliukas came within a smart Boruc save of prompting more home exuberance five minutes after the re-start, while Loovens should have done better with a close-range effort from Shunsuke Nakamura's corner. Andrew Driver volleyed Hearts' last chance of the afternoon over, Celtic ending the match in the ascendancy as Nakamura and Koki Mizuno came close.

A winning goal for either side, though, would have distorted an occasion in which they each contributed so much.

Taken from the Guardian/Observer