After being frustrated by Motherwell’s low block and failing to fashion any meaningful chances in a first half where they controlled possession, Steven Naismith then got to work. There was a change in system as Heart of Midlothian moved to a more attacking formation, a change in personnel, a change in intensity – and, ultimately, a change in fortunes.
Lawrence Shankland – who else? – broke the deadlock midway through the second half, at which point the home supporters let out a collective sigh of relief. Hearts rarely throw away points from winning positions these days, and Saturday was no different. The home side could and possibly should have added to their lead after taking the handbrake off, and Kenneth Vargas’ stoppage-time goal provided the cherry on top of yet another satisfying day’s work for Gorgie’s finest.
So, why did Hearts initially struggle to break Motherwell down? How did the half-time changes turn the game in their favour? And what were the tactical tweaks that served as the catalyst for the victory? Let’s take a look.
READ MORE: Hearts 14 [FOURTEEN] clear in third: Formation switch, Shankland head, Oda impact
Control but no incision
After opting for a 4-2-3-1 in recent weeks, Naismith decided to set the team up in a back three on this occasion. The 3-5-2 adds a layer of defensive security and allows Hearts to really control a match, but at the expense of a few more options in attack when breaking forward.
The opening 45 minutes were an apt display of the shape’s strengths and weaknesses. On the one hand, Hearts kept Motherwell at bay as the visitors struggled to fashion clear-cut opportunities. Naismith’s men dominated the ball too – at the break they had enjoyed around 75 per cent of the possession – but there was one rather sizeable downside. They were struggling to create and find a way through the ’Well’s 5-4-1 shape.
Part of that was down to Motherwell’s set-up. The visitors parked men behind the ball and sat deep, meaning space in the final third was at a premium. Much of Hearts’ build-up play was encouraging, but they then hit a claret-and-amber wall that was proving exceptionally hard to breach. Hearts would get to within 30 yards of goal and then quickly run out of ideas.
Most of Hearts’ attacking play was focused down the right. Stephen Kingsley, playing at right centre-back, was often getting forward in support and Dexter Lembikisa was seeing a lot of the ball. Unfortunately for Hearts, though, that was the point when promising passages of play broke down.
The Motherwell players tended to sit off their opponents without committing to challenges and in such scenarios, the opposition must try and drag them into 1v1 battles. If you can get past just one player, the thinking goes, then all sorts of possibilities can open up. The hope for Hearts was that Lembikisa could do just that but the on-loan Wolves man was far too careless in possession.
Here’s a typical example. Lembikisa gets the ball out wide and has no one ahead of him. Calem Nieuwenhof is the obvious pass, but Lembikisa plays it down the line instead where it’s easily intercepted.
This situation repeated itself time and again on Saturday. But there were also problems on the occasions that Lembkisa managed to beat his man and fashion some space, only to find himself short of options just when it mattered most. Take a look at the example below.
Lembikisa gets the ball out wide again with a Motherwell player closing him down. He decides to cut inside, fooling his marker, but there’s no obvious pass on.
Just look at the space on the edge of the box though – if Beni Baningime gets further forward, then he solves the problem.
Baningime holds his position, and Lembikisa ends up turning back on himself before playing a short pass to Lawrence Shankland. He’s retained possession, but Shankland has an awful lot to do.
Hearts tried to find another way through, but the result remained the same. Scott Fraser and Shankland tried to whip balls into the box from deep, but consistently failed to beat the first man.
By the time the half-time whistle rang out, it was clear that something had to change. Naismith clearly concurred and got to work during the interval.
READ MORE: Hearts 2-0 Motherwell: Impact of formation change made clear
Changing the shape
The team came back out for the second half in a 4-2-3-1 shape as Baningime and Lembikisa made way for Nathaniel Atkinson and Vargas. Alex Cochrane moved into central midfield, Fraser pushed forward into the No.10 role and Vargas lined up on the right of the attack.
The change in formation had one significant benefit in particular: now whenever Hearts were attacking down the wings, they had the numerical advantage. They could create overloads in the wide areas and turn the Motherwell defence – something they had failed to do during the first half.
Here’s an example from Alan Forrest early on in the second half. Kingsley gets the ball and feeds it out wide to Forrest, who has a man bearing down on him.
The winger’s eyes light up when he spots the space in behind.
He beats his man in the individual battle and rifles a low shot at goal, but it doesn’t trouble Liam Kelly all that much.
It was a relatively low-probability attempt on goal, but also a welcome sign of progress. Something more was required if Hearts were to truly make inroads, though.
READ MORE: Cammy Devlin Q&A: What he has noticed about Hearts, FOMO, hating being injured
Oda introduction
Yutaro Oda came on around the hour mark, taking up his usual position at right wing as Vargas shuffled over to the centre. From that point onwards, it became a completely different game.
The Japanese tends to do most of his best work when he is hugging the touchline and taking on his man, but he didn’t do that on Saturday. Instead, he drifted inside, dragging his marker with him and freeing up space for Atkinson to drive into.
Below is a typical example. Oda receives the ball on the right, and Atkinson charges forward to create some space for his team-mate to cut inside.
He drives infield before playing the ball back to Nieuwenhof, and then he’s on his bike.
He’s spotted a gap in the Motherwell backline and is pointing to where he wants the ball.
Instead of playing in Oda, though, Nieuwenhof slips it to Shankland, who plays a first-time pass to Oda. The winger can get a shot away but on this occasion, it’s saved by Kelly.
Here’s another example a few minutes later. Oda holds his position in the centre, and Atkinson has been afforded the freedom of Tynecastle Park on the flank.
The Aussie rampages forward, making it to the Motherwell box before he’s closed down. He should really play it to Nieuwenhof – just look at the space he’s in – but instead goes for a cross into the box that’s easily snuffed out.
Motherwell were struggling now. With Atkinson bombing forward and Hearts’ attackers occupying defenders and moving them around, little gaps started to form. And Nieuwenhof was waiting to fill them.
READ MORE: Steven Naismith Q&A: Back 3 switch, Hearts Old Firm challenge, Baningime update
Exploiting the space
The opening goal arrived from a free-kick, but it was Nieuwenhof who won it by dropping into space and winning the foul. Even after that, though, the Australian was still pulling the strings in the middle – particularly when Motherwell’s wing-backs pushed up, affording the likes of Atkinson even more space to exploit.
Here he is a few minutes later, having just received the ball. He’s getting closed down but has already spotted Atkinson in acres of space.
He slides it out to his team-mate, who whips a delivery in towards Vargas.
Vargas connects brilliantly with it, and only the frame of the goal denies Hearts a second.
A few minutes pass and Nieuwenhof finds himself in a similar situation. He’s got a Motherwell player bearing down on him but he’s spotted Atkinson out wide once again.
He dinks it out to the wing-back and then takes up an excellent position on the edge of the area, but Atkinson opts for the cross again when he should really play it back to Nieuwenhof.
Here he is again, this time getting the ball from deep. Again, he’s under pressure but he releases Oda with an excellent through ball nonetheless.
Nieuwenhof would be substituted shortly afterwards but the 23-year-old could be happy with his display. His positioning was excellent, causing Motherwell all sorts of problems, while his passing was exemplary. By the time he trudged off the park, he had misplaced just one as we can see from the diagram below.
Hearts would continue to attack down the right, and the second goal had Atkinson at the heart of it. It started with a throw-in down the line from Atkinson, where Shankland is waiting to hold the ball up. Atkinson drives forward to support, receiving the ball and then driving ominously towards goal.
He cuts inside, and has some great options. Oda drives in behind but Forrest is the obvious pass.
Instead, Atkinson has a go himself. It doesn’t go in, Vargas gathers the loose ball – and the rest is history.
Read the rules here