Steven Naismith praised Jorge Grant for keeping his cool to set Hearts on their way to a 2-0 victory over Aberdeen at Tynecastle.
The Jambos midfielder took over penalty duties and opened the scoring in the 56th minute, with captain Lawrence Shankland opting to step down from his role as regular taker after missing his previous three spot-kicks.
The pressure was ratcheted up for Grant due to the time taken for the VAR check after Alan Forrest’s cross struck the arm of Aberdeen’s Nicky Devlin.
Asked whose decision it was to change the penalty-taker, Naismith said: “Shanks. I said last week Shanks will decide in the moment. And by the way, it was a pressure penalty.
“When you’ve missed your last three and the delay in taking it, I think Granty was the coolest man on the pitch as you could see from the penalty. It was some finish. It just eased everything, it made us be able to play the way we want to.”
Shankland still managed to get on the scoresheet with a magnificent finish from the edge of the box with the outside of his foot in the 76th minute to seal victory and take Hearts 10 points clear of Kilmarnock in the race for third place in the cinch Premiership.
“Overall I’m pleased with the performance,” said Naismith.
“In the first half, it was really about the fight. Aberdeen came out really aggressively and we were probably second best on that front.
“In the second half we tweaked it slightly but we started much better, and once we got the first goal it changes the dynamic of the game.
“We controlled the game after that, our decision making was good, and it could have been more than two eventually.”
Aberdeen manager Barry Robson was left to rue a pivotal moment in the first half when striker Bojan Miovski had a brilliant strike ruled out after being deemed to have tripped Hearts midfielder Beni Baningime in the build-up.
“We never got the luck today,” he said. “I’ve watched it back and it doesn’t look clear and obvious (Miovski’s foul).
“I thought we were very good first half, I really did, and I thought we could have scored another goal after the Bojan one.
“The one thing I was really angry about is when we gave the penalty away we never performed well after that.
“When you go a goal down then you’ve got to be better than that in the last 25 minutes – that’s what I was angry about.”
Lopetegui pleased with West Ham character after Brentford draw
West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui was pleased with his side’s character as they overcame a poor start to draw 1-1 away to Brentford.
Lopetegui’s side were coming off the back of a comprehensive 3-0 defeat to Chelsea in their last league game and a 5-1 EFL Cup thrashing at Liverpool in midweek.
Bryan Mbuemo’s goal a minute into the encounter could have spelled the worst for the Hammers, but they recovered well and got back on level terms early in the second half through midfielder Tomas Soucek.
Lopetegui now has something to build upon as his side face a vital match at home to Ipswich Town before the next international break, and their overall performance pleased the Spaniard.
He told BBC Sport: “We showed this [Brentford's record of scoring early] to the players and it's incredible we suffered. It's a bad picture to concede so early.
"We kept calm and I think we deserved to win the match in the second half, we showed character and commitment.
"We had three or four very clear situations to score a second goal but we didn't manage it and we take a point. I have to keep positive.
"We always have to work as a team or we are weaker - I think we did this in the second half."
Brentford manager Thomas Frank was content with a point despite again taking the lead early on, as he continues to deal with injuries in the squad.
“It’s a good point,” said Frank. “I'm always disappointed if we don't get three. We were the better team for 75 minutes.
"West Ham outpowered us for 15 minutes at the start of the second half. If you take into consideration that we have nine first team players out, we had nothing to shoot with.
"What I liked from my team was the mentality. We kept going forward."
Frank could not explain the reason for Brentford netting in the opening minute of three straight games, but he feels it speaks to one of the main principles of his side.
“I can't tell you [the secret]. It must be a world record, three games in a row under 40 seconds - it's unbelievable," he added.
"We had a plan again, it's a mindset of playing forward and trying to get on the game straight away. I'm very pleased with that."
Guardiola looking for solutions in midfield in Rodri's absence
Pep Guardiola was pleased with the performance of his midfielders in the 1-1 draw with Newcastle United, but knows he must find solutions in Rodri's absence.
Rodri ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal last week and his unavailability proved costly last season, with City losing three of the four league matches in which he did not feature.
Of the 50 matches Rodri played in all competitions for City last term, Guardiola's side won 38 and only lost once, but they lost four of the nine games he missed.
Rico Lewis and Mateo Kovacic formed City's central pairing against Newcastle on Saturday and Guardiola believes he has the quality in his ranks to plug the gap.
"I know you are going to ask me all the time, but he [Rodri] is not there," said Guardiola, who was also without the injured Kevin De Bruyne at St James' Park.
"Kovacic, Bernardo [Silva], Rico did well, but I have to find solutions. I would love Rodri to be here.
"I see my team and recognise them perfectly. We had chances to score and in midfield we were strong. The issue was balls in behind.
"But sometimes it happens and you have to adapt. We had chances to score, but this is their stadium and they had chances to score, so I'm happy (with a point)."
City failed to score multiple goals in a Premier League match for the first time in 15 games.
Despite dropping points in the league for the second successive match, and having seen City also take the lead through Josko Gvardiol, Guardiola was content with a point against a much-improved Newcastle.
He said: "Sometimes it happens and you have to adapt. We had chances to score, but this is their stadium and they had chances to score, so I'm happy."
Iraola demands Bournemouth pick up points in south coast derby
Andoni Iraola believes it is critical that Bournemouth win points in all games against non-European opposition if they are to improve on last season's 12th-place finish.
Iraola guided Bournemouth to their highest-ever Premier League points total (48) last campaign but has overseen an underwhelming start to this season.
Bournemouth lost 3-0 to Liverpool last weekend, to add to defeats against Chelsea and West Ham. Their only win so far came away at Everton, with a spectacular 3-2 comeback, after trailing 2-0 as late as the 87th minute.
Though Iraola will be watching on from the stands as he serves a touchline ban, he stressed the importance of beating sides like Southampton if the Cherries are to go better than last season.
"It is a derby – a game that everybody always wants to win. Considering the standings, I think it's a very important game for us," the Bournemouth manager told the media.
"Every game we play against a non-European team is definitive. Every time you play, you have to take the most you can.
"It looks like an exciting game. It will be a demanding one, but I think we are training well and ready for it. I'm sure they will be a good team. I don't see weak teams in the Premier League."
Southampton remain in search of their first win of the season, after a rocky start to their first season back in the league.
Russell Martin’s side picked up their first point of the season at home to Ipswich Town but were unlucky to miss out on all three after being pegged back by a last-minute equaliser from Sam Morsy.
Martin hopes his side can take inspiration from their upcoming opponents as they look to kickstart their league campaign and move out of the relegation places.
"Iraola has done a brilliant job, but it took him some time, in the same way it has taken us a bit of time to adapt and adjust. They had a bumpy start under Andoni but they've been brilliant ever since and they've kept building on it," he said.
"We're learning more about what's required at this level. I hope, in the five games we've had, they have enough to know that to feel fear of the Premier League.
"You have to embrace it and really seize the opportunity we have. I feel more and more that they are doing that and the results will follow."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Bournemouth – Antoine Semenyo
Semenyo has the highest goal contributions in the Bournemouth squad so far this season with two goals and one assist to his name.
In the loss at Anfield last week, Semenyo had the joint-highest expected goals total (0.35) among his teammates, equal with Luis Sinisterra. It was also the joint third-highest total across both sides.
He also got the joint most shots away in the match (four), level with Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz.
Southampton – Tyler Dibling
Dibling became Southampton's fourth-youngest Premier League goalscorer when he netted against Ipswich Town at just 18 years and 217 days old.
The youngster has also created five chances for Southampton this season, the third-highest in the squad, despite having only played 205 minutes.
Martin said Dibling's "ceiling is so high", adding: At this moment he couldn't play for every team, he suits the way we play a lot, and he's getting so much better at the stuff he needs to improve on."
MATCH PREDICTION: BOURNEMOUTH WIN
Southampton have found it difficult on their travels of late. They will be looking to reverse a nine-match Premier League away winless streak (W0, D2, L7), having not won on the road in the top flight since February 2023 against Chelsea.
If there is one opponent to do it against though, it could be their south coast rivals. Bournemouth are winless in their last five against Southampton at the Vitality Stadium in the Premier League (D2 L3).
But even that may prove too tough of a challenge. Southampton have picked up just one point in their opening five Premier League matches in 2024-25, their fewest at this stage of a league season since 1998-99, when they had no points after five games.
Southampton also remain winless in their last 18 Premier League matches (D5 L13), since a 1-0 win over Leicester City in March 2023. The last side to have a longer winless run were Norwich City between March 2020 and October 2021 (20 games).
Bournemouth can feel more hopeful about their recent form. Despite suffering a 3-0 defeat at Liverpool last time out, they had 19 shots. That was the joint most by an away team in a Premier League game at Anfield on record since 2003-04.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Bournemouth – 56.7%
Draw – 21.7%
Southampton – 21.6%
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