Ten-man Hearts held on for a 1-1 draw in a tense final-day Edinburgh derby at Tynecastle to stop Hibernian leapfrogging them into fourth place in the cinch Premiership.
The Jambos knew a point would be enough to keep their fifth-place city rivals beneath them and secure automatic European qualification next term, and they got off to the perfect start when Yutaro Oda fired them into a ninth-minute lead.
But a red card for Alex Cochrane – his third of the season – on the half hour and an equaliser from Kevin Nisbet immediately afterwards meant Hearts had to dig deep for more than an hour – including stoppage-time – to get the point they needed.
Despite Hibs failing to get the win they craved, they will join their old foes in getting a crack at the Europa Conference League as long as Celtic defeat Championship side Inverness in next weekend’s Scottish Cup final, albeit starting in an earlier qualifying round.
Hearts made two changes to the team that started Wednesday’s 2-2 draw away to Rangers as Cochrane and Barrie McKay replaced Toby Sibbick and Alan Forrest.
There was one enforced change to the Hibs team that started Wednesday’s win over Celtic as Chris Cadden replaced the injured CJ Egan-Riley.
Hearts got off to the perfect start when they took the lead in the ninth minute as Japanese forward Oda drilled home his first goal for the club from just inside the box after a long throw-in from James Hill was only partially cleared by the Hibs defence.
The hosts suffered a blow in the 17th minute when midfielder Peter Haring – who only recently returned following a lengthy concussion lay-off – was forced off after clashing heads with Cadden while trying to deal with a cross from Elie Youan. The Austrian was replaced by Orestis Kiomourtzoglou.
The game swung in Hibs’ favour just before the half hour, however, when they were awarded a penalty after Cochrane brought Cadden down as he burst into the box.
Following a VAR review, referee Don Robertson showed a red card to Cochrane – whom he had initially booked – for denying a goal-scoring opportunity but he changed the spot-kick award to a free-kick as the foul had been committed just outside the box.
This mattered little to the Hibees, however, as Nisbet, who had been preparing to take the penalty, instead drove the free-kick through the defensive wall and into Zander Clark’s bottom right corner.
The visitors’ tails were up and in the 35th minute Paul Hanlon saw a shot pushed over by Clark from the edge of the box, before Jake Doyle-Hayes’ effort from the resulting corner was deflected behind. Joe Newell then saw a 15-yard strike brilliantly tipped over by Clark from a Doyle-Hayes corner just before the break.
Hibs boss Lee Johnson, knowing his team needed a win to leapfrog their opponents, made two attacking changes for the start of the second half as Ewan Henderson and Harry McKirdy replaced Lewis Miller and James Jeggo.
The visitors went close to taking the lead in the 49th minute when Nisbet glanced a header just wide from a Cadden cross.
The Hibees’ cause was not helped by the fact they lost both Doyle-Hayes and Cadden to injury in the early stages of the second half.
Will Fish had a header from a Newell corner brilliantly saved by Clark in the 75th minute and the centre-back saw another header deflected on to the post, but for all their possession Hibs were unable to find a way through a resilient Hearts back-line, sparking jubilant full-time scenes from the home side.
Conte hopes for Ranieri's success at Roma after Napoli clash
Antonio Conte hopes that everything will go well for Claudio Ranieri after he came out of retirement to take charge of Roma, but only after their Serie A clash this weekend.
Ranieri was tempted back into management by a return to where he began as a player. His third spell at Roma comes after the club sacked two coaches already this season and with the team 12th in the standings.
A trip to leaders Napoli is Ranieri's first task, and Conte is looking forward to meeting up with the 73-year-old.
"I am pleased to see Claudio, I have great esteem for him and there is also friendship," Conte told reporters ahead of Sunday's game.
"I am happy with the chance he has been given. It will be a tough game, for us and for them. Last year, Roma finished ahead of Napoli, they are in the Europa League and had a good transfer window.
"They are not performing according to expectations and I hope for Claudio that everything starts to work after Sunday's game."
The arrival of Ranieri in place of Ivan Juric brings with it not just the danger of the 'new manager bounce' but also upsets Conte's plans for the game.
"When a team changes coach there is an important input on a nervous level," Conte said.
"They are at the third change on the bench. It's inevitable that, if Juric had remained, we knew what kind of team we were going to face.
"Now it's an enigma, we don't have much information nor do we know how they will deal with us. So let's think about ourselves, there is a desire and enthusiasm to continue this path."
After a streak of 21 consecutive home wins in Serie A, Conte lost his last home league match (0-3 against Atalanta). Only once in his career has he recorded two consecutive home defeats in the competition: in November 2009, when he was in charge of Atalanta (against Juventus and Roma).
Napoli are top of the table, but Conte knows it is still early, and with just two points separating the top six clubs, which includes the likes of Atalanta, Fiorentina and Lazio, for now, it is a different title race than usual.
"Only 12 games have passed and there are many teams within very few points," he said.
"We are doing well, but so are the others. There isn't one team which has distanced the others. Perhaps there is a little amazement in seeing some teams in those positions in the standings."
Martino resigns as Inter Miami coach after early playoff exit
Gerardo Martino has resigned as Inter Miami's head coach due to personal reasons, the MLS side have confirmed.
The Argentine ends his 17-month stint in charge of the Herons following their MLS Cup exit just under a fortnight ago.
Martino, who oversaw Miami's Leagues Cup triumph soon after his arrival last season, guided the franchise to this year's Supporters' Shield with a regular-season record tally of 74 points.
However, they were eliminated by his former side Atlanta United in round one of the MLS Cup playoffs.
Miami opened their best-of-three series against Atlanta with a 2-1 win, only to lose by the same scoreline in Game 2 before falling to a dramatic 3-2 defeat in the decider.
“It has been an honour to work at such a special club, and to lead such a special team," Martino said.
"I’ve enjoyed my stay at Inter Miami and will treasure the memories made and relationships forged here for the rest of my life.
"I depart with nothing but gratitude for my time here and would like to offer sincere thanks to everyone that made it possible."
Fonseca: Milan have 'respect' but 'are not afraid' of Juventus
Paulo Fonseca said Milan have plenty of "respect" for Juventus, but his side "are not afraid" of their rivals ahead of their Serie A clash on Saturday.
After a slow start to the season, Milan are six points adrift of Juventus in the table, but only a place behind them, as they aim to make up the ground on the top six.
The Rossoneri have played a game less than Thiago Motta's side, and could catapult themselves back into the Scudetto picture with a win this weekend.
Milan return to the San Siro for the first time since a 2-0 defeat to Napoli at the end of October, and could register two consecutive home defeats in Serie A for the first time since between October and November in 2023.
"It is not decisive, but it is important, like all of them," Fonseca told reporters ahead of Saturday's game.
"I can't say that the game against Juve is more important than the next one against Empoli because we need consecutive victories.
"It's a different game, but I always think positively. We are Milan, we have a lot of respect for the 'Bianconeri', but we are not afraid. We are here ready to win."
A boost for Milan is that Juventus will be without top scorer Dusan Vlahovic for Saturday's clash after returning from international duty with a muscle problem.
Despite the Serbian's absence, Fonseca was aware of the danger his probable replacement, Timothy Weah, would pose, having managed him during his time at Lille.
"Juve knows how to adapt very well. I don't know if Weah will play," Fonseca said.
"Weah is very fast and attacks deep, not like Vlahovic. It will not be the same thing of course.
"We will have to pay attention to movements in depth and less to support work, because he is a player who does less of this job."
While Fonseca has endured a stuttering start to his tenure at the San Siro, Milan have shown they have the ability to match the very best.
They beat rivals Inter in October before stunning Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in their last Champions League encounter, keeping their play-off hopes alive.
"I believe it's a matter of motivation and not pressure," Fonseca said.
"Against Inter, Juve and Real it is easy to be motivated, it's more difficult to go to Cagliari and have the same motivation.
"Pressure is always with us, every day. If we don't want to have pressure, then we shouldn't be here."
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