Hearts 1 – 4 Celtic

Celtic moved three points clear of Aberdeen at the top of the Scottish Premiership after a high-powered second-half display earned Brendan Rodgers’ side a 4-1 win at Hearts.

The visitors saw more of the ball in a goalless first half, but it was Hearts who enjoyed a flurry of chances thanks to cutting counterattacking play.

Blair Spittal and James Penrice were among those to be denied by Kasper Schmeichel, while Alan Forrest saw his strike blocked by Cameron Carter-Vickers at the end of a sweeping move ignited by the outstanding Penrice.

But having struggled to trouble Craig Gordon in the first half, Celtic forced the Hearts goalkeeper into a superb save early in the second, Kyogo Furuhashi seeing his close-range effort denied after pivoting in the box.

The Celtic forward breached Gordon’s goal in the 55th minute, though, finishing at the second time of asking after Daniel Oyegoke had ceded possession in a dangerous area. Spurred on, the visitors then extended their lead through Scottish Premiership top scorer Nicolas Kuhn, who drove into the left-hand-side of the Hearts box and powered his finish into the near top corner.

Though Hearts responded well, coming closest when Anthony Ralston diverted a curling cross onto his own crossbar, Celtic showed their ruthless edge in the closing stages, substitute Adam Idah scoring with just his third touch.

Musa Drammeh, on from the Hearts bench, reduced the deficit to two with a superb strike from outside the box, but Celtic remained on top and Idah converted a stoppage-time penalty to seal an important win.

What’s coming up in the Scottish Premiership?