Celtic Begin Hearts Title Decider at Celtic Park — Scottish Premiership Winners

Celtic and Hearts opened a Scottish Premiership title decider at Celtic Park at 12.30pm BST, with Don Robertson starting the match and scottish premiership winners on the line. Celtic had the first corner in the second minute and Auston Trusty went close seconds later, heading over from that set piece.

Celtic Park Start

The first real pressure came quickly. Tierney found Engels in the penalty area in the seventh minute, and the move ended with Celtic winning another corner. By then, Hearts had already had a brief protest of their own when Shankland thought he had been unfairly stopped from reaching a Celtic long throw in the fifth minute.

Celtic kept the pace high through the opening phase, but the early chances were still limited. Yang Hyun-Jun danced into the area in the 20th minute before Milne dispossessed him, and by the 23rd minute there had been only one effort on goal of any note — Trusty’s header over from the third-minute corner.

Hearts Pressure Builds

Hearts’ physical side of the contest arrived through Milne and Steinwender. Milne nutmegged Johnson in the ninth minute, and Johnson then needed treatment after a challenge in the 14th minute. Steinwender was also forced into action at the other end, leaving the field gingerly after treatment in the 15th minute before limping away after a sliding interception in the 19th.

That sequence mattered because it disrupted both sides’ rhythm before either could turn territory into a clear chance. A corner in the 12th minute curled straight into Sinisalo’s gloves, and Hearts later survived another Celtic threat when Steinwender headed away a long throw in the 25th minute, with Altena clearing the second ball.

Trusty Early Header

Trusty’s third-minute header over remains the clearest opening for Celtic so far. It came from the corner they won two minutes into the match, and it is still the only effort on goal of any note by the 23rd minute.

For a title decider, that kind of opening has kept the margin for error thin. Celtic had the first set-piece chances and the better early territory, but Hearts stayed in the game through blocks, headers and repeated defensive interventions as the first quarter-hour became a test of control rather than finishing.