How Hearts beat Celtic: Variation and Nieuwenhof impact

Hyun-Jun Yang’s early dismissal certainly helped Steven Naismith’s side, and Hearts didn’t look back after Jorge Grant’s penalty handed the hosts the lead shortly before the break. Lawrence Shankland’s instinctive finish around the hour mark left the visitors with it all to do – and despite the champions’ best efforts, they were unable to find a foothold in the match.

So, what did Hearts get right on Sunday? How did they capitalise on their numerical advantage against the champions, while still shutting down opposition attacks and keeping Brendan Rodgers’ men at a distance? Let’s take a look.

READ MORE: Hearts produce big win v Celtic: Clark's moment, brilliant Beni, defensive trio

Pressing and preventing

When playing either half of the Old Firm, what you do off the ball is almost as important as what you do on it. Simply sitting deep and daring Celtic to break you down is a recipe for disaster, whereas teams that press high up the park at least give themselves a chance. It is a high-risk, high-reward strategy – but, if done right, it provides the strongest platform for success.

Hearts were pressing high from the get-go on Sunday afternoon, even when it was 11v11 on the park, and they were reaping the rewards early on at Tynecastle Park. As a typical Brendan Rodgers team, Celtic were determined to play out from the back, and Hearts committed men forward. The idea was to force the ball back to Joe Hart, at which point the goalkeeper would be rushed into a poor kick up the park. He usually played it into a similar position, and usually, a Hearts player would be waiting to hoover it up.

Below is an early example just four minutes into the game. The ball up to Alan Forrest isn’t the best, but he goes haring after it anyway when it’s worked back to Hart.

The Celtic keeper hits a low pass first time into an area that’s asking for trouble, and Hearts duly oblige. Shankland nicks in, and now Naismith’s men are counter-attacking in a dangerous area.

Celtic were struggling to build out as Hearts committed men forward, particularly when the opportunity arose to apply some sustained pressure on the edge of the Celtic box. Twice in the opening 10 minutes, Stephen Kingsley – one of Hearts’ three centre-halves – won the ball back on the edge of Celtic’s area, and the champion’s passing lanes were regularly cut off.

The effect became even more pronounced when Celtic were reduced to 10 men. Rodgers changed the shape to a 4-3-2 that left the champions narrow, particularly in the final third, but the Northern Irishman’s team stuck dogmatically to their principles by continuing to play out from the back.

Naismith’s response? Commit even more men forward. Only Shankland and Forrest would press the back four, while the rest of Hearts' midfield stepped up to block the short passing lanes. Below is a typical example.

We would be remiss not to highlight Beni Baningime’s efforts here, too. The No.6 would sit at the base of midfield when Hearts were in possession but he would push up onto Tomoki Iwata off the ball to effectively man-mark the Japanese out of the game, and to snuff out any wayward long passes from Hart, as in the example above. Sometimes Grant would push up onto Iwata and Baningime would then drop, waiting to snap up any loose passes. And it worked a treat.

His greatest moment would arrive just before the break. Celtic won a loose ball in midfield and worked it to Iwata, who dawdled forward without a care in the world. Baningime went racing after him, dispossessed him with an expertly-timed slide tackle that doubled up as a through ball to Alan Forrest, and the ball was in the back of the net a few moments later. It would eventually be chopped off for offside by VAR, but it highlighted just how effective Baningime was in the middle.

🎶 If you think you’re getting away, Beni will prove you wrong 🎶 pic.twitter.com/4Cm5ldcyN8

— James Cairney (@jamescairney_) March 4, 2024

The result of all of this was that Celtic’s attackers were barely in the game, and spent much of the first half feeding off of scraps. When they were able to beat the press by hooking it long, there was often nobody there to receive it.

Hearts had done an excellent job of keeping Celtic quiet at one end, but now a different matter arose. How would Hearts break them down, fashion chances, and get their noses in front? Thankfully for those of a maroon persuasion, Naismith had a few ideas up his sleeve.

READ MORE: Steven Naismith Q&A: Brilliant performance, soft decisions, Nieuwenhof praise

Variation in attack

Hearts were naturally seeing more of the ball once Yang had been issued with his marching orders, and now the onus was on the home side to use the ball well and find a way through.

At first, the team’s approach was patient. Hearts would control the ball, patiently shifting it around the back and drawing their opponents in. Once a sufficient number of Celtic players had committed, a chipped ball forward (usually from Cochrane or Kye Rowles) would follow, hopefully leaving Hearts in a 3v3 situation at the back. Below is a typical example.

Hearts were making some inroads by doing this, but it wasn't happening often enough and the tempo had to be raised. A consequence of Celtic’s sending-off was that the team stayed rigidly in their narrow 4-3-2 shape, and the midfield and attack had an awful lot of ground to cover. If the ball was on one flank, then chances are Hearts’ wing-back on the other side was often completely unmarked.

This was especially noticeable down Hearts’ right. Greg Taylor regularly found himself marking Nieuwenhof and Dexter Lembikisa simultaneously, with the latter usually afforded the freedom of Gorgie. If Hearts were to take full advantage then slow, side-to-side passes wouldn’t do. Early, raking diagonals were required to make the most of the space – and that’s exactly what Hearts did.

Below are a couple of examples just a minute or so apart. In the first, Rowles spots Lembikisa in acres of space and pings the ball over to him. The end result is a dangerous ball into the box.

Sixty seconds pass and a similar situation arises. Lembikisa wants it early and is screaming to Rowles, but the Aussie doesn’t spot him. Grant does, though, and drills it out to his teammate. Lembikisa can’t get the ball into the box on this occasion, but he does win a corner.

Hearts would keep up their pacier, more direct approach up until Grant slotted home his penalty to hand the men in maroon the lead. Upon the restart, they then kept the ball with a series of safe passes to take the sting out of the game and prevent any hopes of a first-half stoppage-time sucker-punch from Celtic. And it worked a treat.

Hearts’ variation in pace and attack helped them to get players up the park and hurt Celtic, and the champions struggled to deal with it. But there was another crucial factor in Hearts’ build-up play that the visitors repeatedly failed to deal with.

That factor’s name was Calem Nieuwenhof.

READ MORE: Hearts 2-0 Celtic: Shankland's expert finishing, Rowles numbers, xG context

Nieuwenhof breaks the lines

Nieuwenhof’s renaissance has been arguably the biggest Hearts success story of 2024. It wasn’t so long ago that supporters were questioning his value to the team and pondering just exactly what he brings to the party, and now he has established himself as one of the first names on Naismith’s team sheet.

The 23-year-old was, once again, utterly fundamental for Hearts in Sunday’s win. Whenever Celtic committed to the press further up the park, gaps would open up between their defence and midfield – and Nieuwenhof took full advantage.

The Aussie was at it from the very start against Celtic, often drifting forward and right with the ball at his feet to unsettle the visitors’ defence. His ability to drive forward with the ball at his feet caused all sorts of problems, and Celtic never looked comfortable when dealing with him.

The two examples below both occurred inside the first eight minutes of Sunday’s game. On both occasions, Hearts win the ball in the middle before shifting it to Nieuwenhof, who then drives forward and forces Celtic’s defence to react. In the first, Hearts are mystifyingly not awarded the free kick when Lembikisa is sent tumbling to the ground, but they win a set-piece in a dangerous area in the second.

At set-plays, too, Nieuwenhof was proving to be a menace. With every Celtic player camped inside their own box for corners and deep throw-ins, the Australian was afforded an incredible amount of space on the edge of the area. He would take up good spaces around 30 yards from goal before sprinting forward once the short corner was taken and would then be moving at such speed that he would be showing the Celtic defender a clean pair of heels.

These incidents highlight Nieuwenhof’s intelligence, but it was his ability to break the lines where his presence was truly felt. With Celtic down to 10 men, he was given greater license to get forward – and the champions would count the cost shortly before the hour mark.

Rodgers’ men came out for the second half with a renewed sense of purpose and pushed up the park in search of an equaliser. This was absolutely fine with Hearts, who used the extra man well as they patiently shifted the ball around the park and drew their opponents in. And then, once the trap had been set, Hearts pounced.

In the example below, Hearts have enjoyed a sustained spell of possession. The home side calmly circulated the ball as the Celtic players pushed up, and it’s eventually played back to Zander Clark, who hoofs it long to Nieuwenhof. The Aussie is only a few yards over the halfway line but is almost offside, such is Celtic’s high line.

The champions would come to regret that eagerness when Nieuwenhof wins his header and knocks it back to Lembikisa, who plays it to Shankland.

Now Shankland is sprinting right at what’s left of Celtic’s backline, and the visitors don’t like it one bit. The midfielder is then on his bike, driving forward before receiving the ball in a 1v1 situation.

He decides to take on his man and makes a hash of it – but, to his credit, just about manages to knock the ball into Shankland’s path.

The result is a foregone conclusion, and the Hearts skipper coolly slams the ball home to put Hearts 2-0 up, leaving Celtic with a mountain to climb. In the end, it would prove to be insurmountable.

READ MORE: Lawrence Shankland Q&A: Injury doubt, Joe Hart comments, Hearts penalty

Tagawa makes mark

Nieuwenhof wasn’t the only summer signing to catch the eye on Sunday. It’s no secret that Kyosuke Tagawa hasn’t exactly set the heather alight since joining from FC Tokyo during the close season, but the striker’s brief cameo against Celtic suggested that he might have a role to play between now and the end of the campaign after all.

Hearts shut the game down after the second goal as they attempted to retain possession without taking unnecessary risks – in the 75 seconds from their kick-off after the second, Celtic touched the ball just four times as Naismith’s men stroked it about – and the ball was firmly in the visitors’ court. Their defence pushed up further still in an attempt to find some sort of foothold, and the game became a little stretched as a result.

As Scott McIntosh pointed out in our Friday briefing, the conditions were perfect for Tagawa to make an impact. As a pacy, direct striker who likes to play on the shoulder of the last defender, the centre-forward hasn’t always been the best fit tactically for a Hearts side that often find themselves tasked with breaking down a deep-lying defence. But against 10-man Celtic, who found themselves two goals down and chasing the game? Well, there are few Hearts players better suited to the task.

Tagawa seized his opportunity. Here he is just a few minutes after coming on, dutifully pressing Hart and attempting to force the Celtic goalie into a mistake.

He reaches the ball before Hart can hack it clear, and is unfortunate not to win a corner for his side.

A few minutes pass and Celtic win a free kick. They shell the ball into the Hearts box, but Tagawa wins the second ball by using his body superbly.

Celtic have over-committed – and Tagawa knows it. He sprints forward with the ball, using his body well to hold off the onrushing Daizen Maeda before releasing it to Macaulay Tait at just the right moment.

Tait can’t convert on this occasion, but Tagawa can be very pleased with his contribution.

Then, in the 92nd minute, Tagawa gets his chance. The ball breaks to Cammy Devlin in midfield and the diminutive Aussie makes a beeline for goal. Tagawa takes up a good position and makes sure he’s onside, and waits for Devlin to slip him in.

It looks like Tagawa has been a little too eager. His body shape suggests he wanted Devlin to play the ball ahead of him, but instead, it’s played to the centre-forward’s feet. Tagawa is now off-balance, mis-controls the ball and he can’t get his shot away. Devlin can't believe it.

Tagawa really ought to be hitting the target at the very least, but he doesn’t allow his head to drop in the aftermath of the mix-up. In fact, in the game’s final action, he’s unfortunate not to add a third.

Shankland receives the ball just inside his own half, and Tagawa is on his bike. The Japanese times his run beyond the halfway line to perfection and is clean through on goal, only for Shankland to slice his ball through.

The dotted line shows the ball Shankland should have played, and the full line shows the one he actually played. 

Instead, it goes out for a throw – and the ref blows his whistle for full-time.