Heart of Midlothian 0-4 Celtic

Hearts suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at the hands of Celtic in Wednesday night's re-scheduled Clydesdale Bank Premier League clash at Tynecastle.

Scott Brown put his side in front inside three minutes, before Victor Wanyama and Joe Ledley added their names to the score sheet to ensure the Hoops went into half-time three goals to the good.

Gary Hooper then sealed the win with a close range header on the hour mark to cap off a truly miserable evening for the Jambos.

Paulo Sergio made three changes to the side that drew with St Johnstone on Sunday, two of them forced as Ian Black and David Templeton missed out due to suspension and injury respectively.

Meanwhile top scorer Rudi Skacel made way for Mehdi Taouil as the gaffer opted for a three man midfield, supported by two wing backs, in a bid end Celtic's fifteen game unbeaten run.

Hearts were looking to record a second successive home victory against Neil Lennon's men, having been the last team to inflict a domestic defeat on the visitors in a 2-0 win at Tynecastle back in October.

Games between the two sides seldom disappoint in terms of entertainment, but few could have predicted the dramatic start to this tie.

It began with the Jam Tarts forcing an early corner, with Webster heading the delivery back across the box to Stephen Elliott who appeared to give the Jambos the lead. Although he failed to get enough power on his close range header, it did appear to cross the line but referee William Collum disagreed and waved play on.

Although Hearts initially retained possession, Brown soon broke up play and released James Forrest down the right flank. The winger cut inside before returning the ball to Brown, whom calmly placed the ball into the bottom left corner from seven yards out.

The game edged back and forth for a period after the opener, with both Brown and Scott Robinson going close with respective long range efforts.

Things soon went from bad to worse for the boys in maroon, however, as the Glasgow side doubled their advantage on twenty minutes.

A Charlie Mulgrew corner found James Forrest on the edge of the box; his ensuing shot stopped at the feet of Wanyama who took a touch before lifting the ball into the roof of the net from seven yards out.

Celtic looked dangerous whenever they ventured into the Hearts half and almost grabbed a third when a Mulgrew shot deflected off the boot of Marius Zaliukas, narrowly missing the bottom right post in the process.

The incessant green and white pressure persisted, and Lennon's men soon found themselves three goals to the good inside thirty minutes.

Hooper fed Georgias Samaras down the left flank and the Greek striker's chipped cross picked out an unmarked Ledley on the back post who was left with the simple task of nodding the ball into the empty net.

The Gorgie side struggled to cope with Celtic's passing game and rarely threatened the visitors; a Taouil volley shortly before half time their only notable effort on goal in a half when nothing seemed to go their way.

Sergio replaced Andrew Driver with Gary Glen during the interval as he opted to go with two up front in a bid to find a way back into the tie.

Both teams enjoyed a relatively quiet start to the second half, although the visitors remained in control for large periods.

They were soon rewarded for their persistence on the hour mark, however, as Hooper got on the end of a Wanyama flick-on from the back post; the English striker heading the ball over the line from point blank range to put his side four goals up.

The Jambos responded by bringing on Skacel in a bid to find some inspiration, but the game was as good as over at this stage with Celtic rarely looking troubled.

Suso Santana was then introduced with twenty minutes left and could have found himself on the score sheet, but his low drive from just inside the box missed Fraser Forster's bottom left corner by inches.

Samaras then let fly from distance which forced MacDonald into making a quick dive to his right as the visitors went in search of a fifth goal with just under ten minutes remaining.

Hearts were unable to find a breakthrough in the closing stages and Lennon's side looked more than comfortable as they saw out the remaining minutes to clinch all three points.

The Jambos must now re-group ahead of their visit to Kilmarnock on Saturday.

Hearts: MacDonald; Hamill, Webster, Zaliukas, McGowan, Grainger(Skacel64); Taouil, Mrowiec, Driver(Glen45), Robinson(Suso71); Elliott. Subs not used: Ridgers, Barr, Obua, Holt.

Celtic: Forster; Matthews, Rogne(Majstorovic64), Wilson, Mulgrew; Brown(Brozek73), Wanyama, Ledley, Forrest; Samaras, Hooper(Stokes66). Subs not used: Zaluska, Cha, Ki, Commons.

Referee: William Collum

Top man: Mehdi Taouil

Hearts World