Overview
- Hearts’ 12-game unbeaten start ended with a 1-0 loss at Aberdeen, leaving them top but with points dropped in three of their last four matches.
- Derek McInnes urged calm, saying his side created the better chances and insisting he expects a response as they head to Motherwell next.
- Top scorer Lawrence Shankland awaits results of a calf scan after missing the Pittodrie match, with Beni Baningime and Craig Halkett also absent.
- Replacements struggled to match the missing trio, sharpening questions about a large squad’s true depth and the manager’s rotation choices.
- Hearts have 29 goals from an xG of 22.46, raising sustainability concerns as a testing run looms against Kilmarnock, Celtic, Rangers and Hibs, with Celtic winning late and Rangers stringing league wins together.