Hearts blew Omonia Nicosia away in a pulsating first half under the lights to make it two wins from two in the Conference League.
Tynecastle was rocking with the home side electric and taking the lead through Alan Forrest, added to by a Blair Spittal blockbuster.
Hearts were on the front foot early on and had a couple of near things inside the box but couldn’t quite the break of the ball.
But within 16 minutes the breakthrough did come. Alan Forrest had been restored to the starting line-up for his 100th appearance and he vindicated his manager by getting on the ball at the back post and lashing past Fabiano in the away goal.
Lawrence Shankland almost made it two with a curling effort five minutes later but this time the goalkeeper was equal to it. From the corner, Frankie Kent nodded wide when it looked easier to score.
Again though they didn’t have long to wait as moments later Blair Spittal unleashed an absolute thunderbolt that almost broke the net and earned some breathing space.
The Jambos could have added more goals before half-time but after the break it was slightly less dominant, although they weren’t exactly soaking up a lot of pressure either until the final 15 minutes or so.
Critch-ball in full swing
This was a Hearts performance full of attacking verve and swagger, in the first half anyway. Exactly what their fans want to see at Tynecastle and have been crying out for. The movement and combination in the final third, with Blair Spittal and Alan Forrest in particular freely moving about and linking up at will, was too much for the Cypriots to live with. So far, Neil Critchley is certainly proving doubts about his style wrong and also showed he can rotate things without an impact on the performance.
Brilliant Blair
Playing in a role just off Lawrence Shankland but with freedom to roam, Blair Spittal was simply brilliant here and is now showing why he was brought to Tynecastle in the summer. After looking like he might not replicate his Motherwell form, that is exactly what he is now doing with three goals in three. All superbly taken, too. It wasn’t just the goals though as he popped up in space anywhere he wanted and toyed with the Omonia defence.
Boateng breaks it up
Those are four words any commentator working on the game would have been likely to utter on several occasions. In the absence of Beni Baningime, the ex-Dundee loanee had an important job at the base of midfield and carried it out with a calm assuredness. He won the ball back numerous times to break up Omonia play and allow his own team to get back on the attack. So composed on the ball, too.