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New Hearts signing guns down Euro heavyweights as Craig Gordon given tearjerking send off – 5 talking points

Amadou Ba-Sy hit a debut double as Hearts celebrated 140 years of Tynecastle. And the good news for Jambos fans was their new-look side looked right at home against Conference League runners-up Rayo Vallecano, winning 2-1 as they gear up for Tuesday’s Champions League qualifier against Sturm Graz. New signing Ba-Sy took no time to suggest he can fill Lawrence Shankland’s goalscoring boots as the 6ft 3in forward opened his account after just 19 minutes of his first appearance with a glancing header - then nodded home a second quarter of an hour later. Vallecano weren’t at full strength. But Wouter Vrancken got his first taste of the Gorgie roar and will have taken huge heart from this showing ahead of the trip to Graz. The visitors, who were in a European final back in May, did have Barcelona icon Samuel Eto’o’s son Etienne in midfield and started brightly. They were denied twice in the opening stages by Alexander Schwolow before Oisin McEntee headed wide for Hearts at the back post. But after just 19 minutes Ba-Sy bulged the net for the first time in maroon. Tom Renaud zinged a wonderful diagonal into the path of Stephen Kingsley who had piled forward from left back and cut back to Josh McPake whose cross was perfect for the big striker to glance a header past Adrian Molina. MJ Kamson-Kamara clipped the top of the bar from another McPake delivery on the left. But Ba-Sy was on fire - and he made it 2-0 after 34 minutes with another header this time from Christian Borchgrevink’s pinpoint cross from the right. Renaud could have made it three just before the break after running clear onto Braga’s through ball but Molina got down to block the midfielder’s effort. Schwolow then had to produce a flying save to turn Pedro Diaz’s 25 yard fee kick over the bar. Sabri Guendouz, Rogers Mato, Yan Dhanda and Tomas Magnusson were introduced at half time with Ba-Sy, McEntee, Renaud and McPake removed as Vrancken shared the load. Vallecano, in turn, changed their entire 11. And they halved the deficit right on the hour mark when former Atletico Madrid forward Sergio Camello’s deflected effort from 20 yards looped over Schwolow. But substitutes came and went and by the end Vrancken had used TWENTY FOUR members of his squad across the 90 minutes as Hearts closed out victory and sent the 14,557 who turned out to mark the occasion home happy. Here are our 5 talking points Lawrence who? Not quite. But Amadou Ba-Sy took no time to show the Tynecastle faithful he means business on his first 45 minute run out in maroon. The 6ft 3in forward was a welcome sight in the Jambos starting line-up having been struck down by illness almost from the moment he arrived from FC Rouen in the third tier of French football last month. The Frenchman lost six kilos over a couple of weeks according to Vrancken. But he has built up his fitness to start through the middle against Vallecano with Claudio Braga in behind - and took just 19 minutes to open his account with a beautiful glancing header from McPake’s cross. Fifteen minutes later he had his brace with another header - this time from Borchgrevink’s cross on the right. The 6ft 3in forward has some French swagger and some tidy footwork too on this evidence. But he’s not scared to work the line or drop deep to get on the ball either in this fluid gameplan. There was a glaring miss with his left foot from McEntee’s cutback just five minutes before he netted his first. But nobody was grumbling by full-time. Ba-Sy won’t play any part in Graz having found a level of fitness too late to make the list. You just wonder if Vrancken might be regretting that after this performance. The time for preparations are almost over. Hearts head into the Champions League qualifiers for the first time in 20 years on Tuesday and they do so on the back of a morale-boosting victory against Euro opposition. Vrancken has only had three weeks to get his game plan over. But the signs are positive. The willingness to play from the back is clear - but with risks aplenty. There were a few collywobble moments from MJ Kamson-Kamara, Oisin McEntee and Stuart Findlay. But in risk there’s reward, they say. And it came with two fantastic goals in the first half. Fluid with lots of movement in the forward areas, chaos ball is how the Belgians liked to describe Vrancken’s style. Hearts looked comfortable in possession for long spells with Tom Renaud in the engine room making the most of the time and space the Spaniards were affording. Josh McPake produced a series of dangerous deliveries from the left in the first half, from which Ba-Sy benefited by opening the scoring. Braga looked hungry and linked well in the number 10 role and all in all there was plenty to send the punters away full of hope. Giant Dutch keeper Beau Reus signed just ahead of kick off - but Alexander Schwolow started this one and looks set to face Graz in a final farewell before joining Mainz on August 1. The German was involved after just a matter of seconds as he bailed out Oisin McEntee whose loose pass allowed Alexandre Zurawski a clean run on goal and moments later produced a fine block to deny Eto’o from close range as Vallecano turned on the style. Another impressive full length save from Diaz’s free kick just before half time proved the German’s head is still in the game despite his pending move. Which will be crucial in Austria. Schwolow was a huge presence for the Jambos last season and he looks to have lost none of the quality that saw him keep Craig Gordon on the bench for the majority of the season. Speaking of whom, Gordon appeared to make an emotional farewell to the Tynecastle faithful at half time as well, just 24 hours after confirming his retirement after an incredible 24-year career at the top. It was hankies all round for his fan base. The big keeper revealed he plans to join them in the stands next season as he considers his next career move. Christian Borchgrevink only made two league starts in five Premiership appearances under Derek McInnes in an injury-hit campaign last time out. But the right back has looked the business in pre-season and produced another solid 60 minutes here topped off by a neat dinked cross for Ba-Sy’s second goal. Whether the Norwegian gets the nod ahead of Jordi Altena to start in Graz remains to be seen. Both full backs’ strengths are in the forward areas. Both have question marks over their defensive work. Whoever gets the nod will need to be on point against Graz’s lively forward line. The sight of the Hearts badge on UEFA’s Champions League page would be enough to get Jambos hitting the internet for their official squad which dropped on Friday afternoon. Two decades they’ve waited for this. Ba-Sy might have impressed in his first run out here. But it came too late to make the cut for Graz. Likewise there is no Josh McPake, MJ Kamson-Kamara or goalkeeper Reus in the 22-man list. McPake was perhaps a surprise omission while Kamson-Kamara was edged out of the defensive line by more experienced heads and the list dropped too early for Reus. Alexander Schwollow is still available to line up in goal in Tuesday’s second qualifying round opener against Sturm Graz in Austria. Otherwise the Jambos squad was as you’d expect with injured trio Craig Hackett, Ageu and Finlay Pollock also missing out.

2026-07-17

New Hearts signing guns down Euro heavyweights as Craig Gordon given tearjerking send off – 5 talking points

2026-07-17