It wasn’t pretty, but they got there in the end. Heart of Midlothian’s 2-1 win away to Livingston ensured that Steven Naismith’s side would go into the Premiership break sitting pretty in third, opening up a five-point gap over Kilmarnock in fourth, with the team extending their unbeaten run to five matches – but the contest was not one for the neutral.

Hearts, perhaps feeling a little leggy due to the hectic festive fixture list, were undoubtedly slow out of the traps in West Lothian, but the conditions weren’t exactly conducive to an entertaining, free-flowing game either. With the rain falling on Livi’s plastic pitch, the ball skited hither and yon as both sets of players struggled to get the ball under control.

It was more of a fight than a football match, but Hearts would still triumph nonetheless. After a sluggish start at the Tony Macaroni, the visitors improved after the break and took a two-goal lead thanks to strikes from Kenneth Vargas and Lawrence Shankland. Andrew Shinnie’s successfully converted penalty with 10 minutes to go led to a nervy finale for Naismith’s men, but they were able to see out the victory to claim the three points.

So, how did Hearts seal the win? How did the team turn a slow start into a fourth win in five? Let’s take a look.

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Congested play

Naismith opted for a change in shape for this match as his players lined up in a 3-4-3 formation, while Livi went for a 3-4-2-1, but the biggest talking point before kick-off was the inclusion of Peter Haring in midfield alongside Calem Nieuwenhof. Fans were quick to point out that it was a central midfield pairing that wasn’t exactly blessed with pace (those fears would be realised towards the end of the first half when a slack pass from Haring resulted in a Livi counter-attack; Nieuwenhof was forced to haul down his man and pick up a booking to prevent it) but the selection also hinted at a change in style. The two teams’ passing networks demonstrate their respective shapes nicely.

Hearts tend to dominate the ball in these types of games, patiently probing for a way through their opponent’s defence, but that was always going to be a tall order at the Tony Macaroni Arena. A combination of the conditions and the rough-and-tumble style employed by Davie Martindale’s men meant that a new strategy was required, as Naismith explained after the game.

“It's not a pitch you're going to get any good football on,” he said. “It's a battle in these games. If you let the ball bounce, you're in trouble defensively and also the timing of your runs are most important. You work every day about the main things you want to be as a team. You can get sucked into saying 'but we do this'. But when you play on pitches like this, it's not worth the risk.”

It didn’t take long to see that Hearts were approaching this game a little differently. Rather than retaining possession, they were instead launching long balls forward for the likes of Shankland, Vargas and Alan Forrest to chase, bypassing the midfield entirely and focusing the play down the wings. With Livi employing a high back line, there was space in behind to exploit – but Hearts couldn’t take full advantage.

It was a sound strategy, but it didn’t really pay off during the opening 45 minutes. Livi pressed high up the park and very aggressively, particularly out wide, and the result was that Hearts were struggling to build out from the back. The ball would often reach as far as Hearts’ wing-backs before the options dried up and they were forced into hopeful balls forward that the hosts’ defence greedily hoovered up.

Hearts struggled to beat the press during the first half, but there were a few moments where the ploy very nearly paid off. Forrest was a matter of inches away from scarpering through for a one-on-one on one occasion, and Vargas found himself with space to advance into in a couple of instances. Forrest was ultimately denied by an excellent last-ditch tackle from Mikey Devlin, while Vargas simply lost control of the ball while trying to dribble when he had a chance to hurt Livi. Just look at the space they had to advance into.

Hearts’ wide players didn’t take their opportunities when they arose in the first half, but the bigger concern was that Naismith’s men were struggling to fashion chances whatsoever. In the face of relentless Livingston pressure, they struggled to string any more than a few passes together before losing it, and their deliveries forward were often rushed. The home side were forcing the game to be played in tight, congested areas so that Hearts couldn’t get their foot on the ball – and it was working, to an extent.

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Livi disruption

Martindale’s men certainly made life difficult for Hearts off the ball but on it, they didn’t make the most of Hearts’ sluggish start. There were a few warnings early on – Ayo Obileye’s close-range header from a corner (that likely would have been ruled out for offside anyway) and Kurtis Guthrie’s disallowed goal – but for all that the hosts were able to disrupt Hearts’ rhythm, they struggled to fashion clear-cut sights at goal. Take a look at the xG chart for the game below – notice how neither side mustered much in an attacking sense in the opening half.

That all-important final ball might not have been there for Livingston but there was little doubt about who was on top during the first half. Their strategy in possession was straightforward – knock the ball long to James Penrice at left wing-back, and try to exploit the space in behind Toby Sibbick. It worked like a charm, too: Penrice was winning his individual battle with Sibbick and was routinely sending inviting deliveries into the area. The only problem was that Livi didn’t have enough bodies in the box to make the most of them. Of the nine crosses that Penrice attempted, only one found their intended target. Hearts’ three centre-halves would protect the area, even if Sibbick was beaten, and relied on their numerical superiority to keep Livi at bay. Unless it’s a near-perfect delivery, Penrice is unlikely to find his man.

When they weren’t attacking down the left flank, Livi would shell the ball in towards Guthrie in a central position. He wouldn’t always win his header, but that was okay. Whether it was Guthrie or a Hearts player that won the initial aerial duel, the ball would always be played around 10 or 15 yards backwards where three Livi players were often waiting to seize upon the loose ball. This helped the home side get up the park, and gave them a few short passing options to move the ball on quickly. Below is a typical example.

The result was that the two sides effectively cancelled each other out during the first half. When the half-time whistle rang out, each team had mustered just three shots on goal each, with none forcing Zander Clark or Jamie Hamilton into action. Shankland’s glanced header that crashed off the woodwork was millimetres away from breaking the deadlock but apart from that, there really wasn’t much to write home about from a Hearts perspective.

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Hearts create space

Livingston’s intensity had prevented Hearts from getting going during the first half on Tuesday afternoon, but it would be a big ask for the hosts to continue in the same manner for the full 90 minutes. And so it proved after the break. Livi’s press wasn’t as aggressive now. They were sitting a little deeper, too, affording Hearts what they craved most of all: time on the ball. Even the weather had subsided a bit, making the ball that little bit easier to control.

The effect was almost instantaneous. Less than a minute after the restart, a Livingston attack broke down and the ball was worked to Haring. With no opponents around him, the Austrian was able to get his head up, carefully pick his next move and time his pass to match the forward’s run.

This time, he plays an excellent through ball to Vargas and, unlike in the first half, the Costa Rican attacker is able to get the ball under control and has just one man to beat with lots of space to move into. He slaloms his way towards goal and drills a low shot just past the far post.

A couple of minutes passed until another expansive pass cut Livingston open. This time it was Sibbick, finally given the chance to get his head up and switch the play to the other side. His cross-field pass allows Hearts to beat the press and a few seconds later, Forrest wins a penalty.

A few minutes pass and Nieuwenhof gets in on the act. The Australian wins the second ball in midfield and quickly releases Forrest in a dangerous area. Hearts were finding gaps – and exploiting them ruthlessly.

Joel Sked has already examined Forrest’s excellent performance against Livi and so we won’t retread old ground, except to say that the former Livi and Ayr United winger was utterly crucial for Hearts in this one. For the next 20 minutes or so, the 27-year-old was at the heart of just about everything positive that Naismith’s men did and he set up both goals as Hearts enjoyed a rare spell of dominance in the game.

Martindale switched to a 4-2-3-1 and Livingston went a lot more direct after Penrice’s afternoon was cut short by a knock. Now, Livi were peppering Hearts’ backline with crosses from deep as the momentum swung back in their favour, and Andrew Shinnie’s penalty 10 minutes from time promised a nervy finale in West Lothian. When Martindale brought on another forward and Livi essentially went 4-2-4 for the game’s closing exchanges, the 5,000 away fans in the crowd could have been forgiven for expecting to watch the remainder of the game through their fingers. But Naismith still had one more card left to play.

READ MORE: Alan Forrest and Kenneth Vargas step up as Hearts sit pretty in third after Livi win

Denholm’s cameo

Aidan Denholm was brought on in the 89th minute for Nieuwenhof but the stop-start nature of the match meant he would be given 10 minutes or so to make an impression. He would not require a second invitation.

The academy product was brought on to add some extra energy to the midfield, and didn’t he do just that. He almost grabbed an assist minutes after his introduction after his Shankland-esque flick-on sent Forrest through for a 1v1 with the Livingston keeper.

Hearts then had a corner, and they had committed men forward so they could keep a hold of it next to the corner flag. Livi eventually win it back, and Hearts are vulnerable to the counter-attack.

Not if Denholm has anything to do with it. He cynically brings his man down and gives away the free kick, providing his teammates with time to get back and defend.

Denholm didn’t stop there. When Livi won a late free kick and threw just about everyone forward for it, Hearts repelled the initial ball. Denholm went haring after it single-handedly and eventually forced Livi into playing it back to their goalkeeper.

Then, as the game approached the 98th minute and Hearts were running down the clock, another important intervention. Receiving the ball on the left wing with two Livi players bearing down on him, Denholm carefully shepherded the ball into the corner and won a corner kick to all but seal the win for Hearts.

It was a fleeting cameo from Denholm – but the youngster managed to catch the eye nonetheless.

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Hearts find a way

It wasn't a match that will live long in the memory, but it was another important three points gained in Hearts' quest to finish third. A combination of Livingston's tactics, the surface underfoot and the conditions prevented Naismith's men from playing as they ideally would have liked, but they managed to find a way through.

Livingston away is always going to be a battle and on this occasion, it was one that Naismith's players were up for. Once Livi's pressing relented and Hearts were able to get their foot on the ball, the visitors were able to fashion little pockets of space that allowed them to exploit Livi's high line - and they did so mercilessly.