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The Scottish Premiership leaders stumble to a third successive away defeat as Kilmarnock dig out a deserved three points.
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We asked you Hearts fans for your opinions on the 1-0 loss to Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. Here's a taste of what you had to say...
Campbell: We have too many of our best players injured. Some may be back for the next match and certainly for the games after the split, so we can still do it.
Jim: Wrong team, wrong tactics again. What did this squad do for a fortnight? Very poor, didn't look like scoring, but hey, we're still top.
Finn: Spineless and absolutely no fight, playing like we were last season when we had nothing to play for. Effort simply wasn't there, playing absolutely nothing like what we are capable of. It can only get better with Cammy Devlin and Lawrence Shankland to come back, but a serious wake-up call.
Steve: Finally supporters are realising we'll win nothing under Derek McInnes. We've dropped so many points against the lowest teams in the league, who are meant to be on poor runs - Kilmarnock, St Mirren and Aberdeen - due to poor tactics or team selection. He constantly takes most of our attacking threat off to protect one goal leads. Hopefully we'll get third this season.
Calum: Quite easily our worst performance of the season. Alexandros Kyziridis is badly needing dropped, he looks an utter shadow of the player he was at the start of the season. It's getting worrying how loyal McInnes is to Michael Steinwender, a player who's let him down so often now. Anyway, we can't lose hope at this stage - bring on next week.
Raymond: Hearts looked like a team who had never played together before. It was a totally abject performance. All the players need to take a good look at themselves for letting all those travelling fans down with a terrible display.
Chris: Sick of begging for Steinwender to be dropped. We improved massively in the right back position when he was subbed off for an actual right back, Jordi Altena. McInnes has gotten lucky of late and it all came crashing down tonight. Deserved nothing, and got nothing.
Steve: Thousands of us turned up for this match, none of the players or management did. Insipid football reminiscent of the Neil Critchley days. We were 1-0 down and passing the ball across the back four, ensuring every last ounce of energy is drained from us. Kilmarnock were excellent value for their win.
Hearts do not plan on selling Claudio Braga to a direct rival after a report suggested Celtic are interested in the 26-year-old forward who joined the Edinburgh club last summer. (Football Insider), external
Read Sunday's Scottish Gossip in full.
Image source, SNSHearts head coach Derek McInnes tells BBC Scotland: "It wasn't good enough. I didn't think we started the game well, for whatever reason. We had a good week's work going into this game.
"I thought we had a good warm-up, looked sharp and ready then and when you come away from home against a team fighting for their lives you know what to expect.
"I didn't think we looked sharp enough to the pitch of the ball, didn't close spaces down or stop crosses. I just though we looked easy to play against.
"They get far too simplistic a goal and there's no pressure on the cross and they have a free man in the box.
"We gave Kilmarnock something to cling on to and you have to credit them.
"We had 60% possession and more chances but we never really… we huffed and puffed and had a few chances but you have to say Kilmarnock scrapped and fought for the three points.
"We tried to throw more attacking players on it but it petered out. We're disappointed not with our effort but the quality of our play.
"I've told the players we still wake up tomorrow top of the league with eight games to go. We pick ourselves up and go again."
Hearts' charge at the top of the Scottish Premiership was dealt a shock blow as Kilmarnock stunned the league leaders with a deserved victory at Rugby Park.
Have your say on the game here.
Image source, SNSKilmarnock midfielder Jack Thomson returns from suspension while Kyle Magennis is back in training.
Tyreece John-Jules (quad), Djenairo Daniels (knee), Matty Kennedy (hip) and Lewis Mayo (hamstring) remain out.
Hearts welcome back Oisin McEntee, but Stephen Kingsley (calf), Craig Gordon (shoulder), Ageu (thigh), Cammy Devlin (ankle), Stuart Findlay, Lawrence Shankland, Calem Nieuwenhof and Finlay Pollock (all hamstring) are still unavailable.
Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter
Image source, SNSHearts midfielder Blair Spittal says the players are "thriving" on the pressure of chasing down the club's first top-flight title in 66 years.
The Tynecastle club, who visit Kilmarnock on Saturday night, sit five points clear at the top having finished in the bottom six last season.
And Spittal, who joined the club in June 2024, has been blown away by the turnaround at Tynecastle.
"I think you could see the strength of the squad that we've built over the summer," the 30-year-old said.
"I think it helped going into the League Cup, having that chance to build that bit of momentum as well, going into the season and things have gone really well so far. There's still plenty of football to be played, we know that.
"It's mental, considering where we were at this point last year. It's probably a different kind of pressure to what we were under last year, but it's one that the boys are thriving on.
"I've never been in this position before, but it's one that all the boys in the changing room are enjoying at the minute. Like I said, there's plenty of football still to be played, so we just need to do our job, so we can do it."
Hearts won 3-0 win at Rugby Park earlier this season but Killie have been strong at home in the league since Neil McCann and Billy Dodds took charge, beating Aberdeen and St Mirren before a last-gasp defeat to Celtic.
"I think regardless of how Kilmarnock are doing, it's always a tough place to go," Spittal added.
"We're under no illusions of how hard it's going to be. Obviously people will be looking at the last result [5-1 loss at Falkirk], but the form before that was really good.
"We're expecting the best Kilmarnock to turn up on Saturday so we need to give the best version of ourselves."
Image source, SNSHearts have expressed gratitude to fans for a "truly staggering achievement" after the Foundation of Hearts raised £20m in member contributions.
Next Saturday's home game against Dundee has been designated as Foundation of Hearts day in celebration of the milestone.
The FoH, which currently has more than 8,000 members and is Hearts' majority shareholder, was founded in 2010 and played a key role in saving the club when it went into administration three years later.
Hearts CEO Andrew McKinlay said: "We're at the stage now where we're beginning to run out of superlatives to describe our supporters but this latest announcement is somewhat breathtaking.
"What the fans of this football club are doing, and have done since day one, is nothing short of magnificent. To have raised £20m in contributions is simply sensational.
"Our fan ownership model is the envy of clubs the length and breadth of the country but it wouldn't be a success without the work ethic and commitment of the Foundation of Hearts.
"Everyone there deserves enormous credit for reaching £20m, as do our FoH members who continue to provide an unrivalled level of backing."
Nine matches remain where dreams will either be realised or left lingering as thoughts of what might have been.
Earlier in the season there were many who questioned whether Hearts could truly go the distance, yet those doubts are fading. Performances, belief and results have started to convince even the sceptics.
Quite simply, if Hearts can collect 23 points from the 27 still available they will be crowned champions for the first time since the famous 1959-60 season.
For a generation of supporters that moment would mean everything. Tynecastle would erupt and the streets of Edinburgh would turn into a sea of maroon as fans celebrate a title they have waited decades to see again.
However, before thoughts turn to trophies and parades there remains an enormous amount of work still to be done.
Four matches remain before the league splits in two and each brings its own challenge. Difficult away trips to Kilmarnock and Livingston will test the squad's resilience, while home fixtures against a resurgent Dundee and impressive Motherwell promise to be far from straightforward.
Manager Derek McInnes has been reminding his players not to look too far ahead. His message throughout the campaign has been clear – focus only on the next match. It is a mantra that has served Hearts well and will continue to be repeated loudly inside Tynecastle.
The recent break will also have been welcomed by players who have accumulated their fair share of bumps and bruises across a demanding season.
Encouragingly, those recovering from longer-term injuries, including Cammy Devlin and Lawrence Shankland, are due back in full training next week as they edge closer to a return to first-team action.
Their availability could prove vital as Hearts prepare for one of the most gripping and memorable run-ins to a Premiership season.
Image source, SNSClaudio Braga has 12 league goals for Hearts in 2025-26, the most by a non-British/Irish player in their debut top-flight season with the club since Juanma in 2015-16 (also 12), while the last to net more was Rudi Skacel in 2005-06 (16). Eight of Braga's 12 Scottish Premiership goals have come away from home.
Hearts have lost their past two away league outings, as many as in their first 12 of the season beforehand (W8 D2 L2). Hearts last suffered more successive away defeats in the Premiership in October 2024 (five).
No side has lost more home games in the top flight this season than Kilmarnock (eight, level with Livingston). Killie haven't lost more on home soil in a single campaign in the competition since 2015-16 (11).
Hearts have won their past two league visits to Kilmarnock and could win three in a row at Rugby Park in the top flight for the first time since January 2011.
Kilmarnock have only secured two wins in their past 10 league meetings with Hearts (D4 L4), winning 2-1 in October 2024 and 1-0 in December 2024 (D1 L3 since those two).
Hearts striker Claudio Braga is a signing target for Celtic (Glasgow World, external)
But Brighton are also keen on the Tynecastle forward (GiveMeSport, external)
Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter
Celtic & Rangers fans offering support - McInnes
Derek McInnes has been speaking to the media before Premiership leaders Hearts visit Kilmarnock on Saturday.
Here are the main points:
Cammy Devlin and Lawrence Shankland will be back in full training next week before the Dundee game, but this weekend's match is "too soon for both".
McInnes says Shankland should be available for Scotland's friendlies against Japan and Ivory Coast later this month, but "would need to show that he's fit".
Oisin McEntee returns from injury for the Rugby Park trip but goalkeeper Craig Gordon is in London getting an injection in his shoulder.
With a five-point lead and nine games left, McInnes knows his side are in a "great position" and adds: "It's down to the efforts of the players, how well they've done. The focus has been great. The last couple of games have really pleased us in the sense that we've got the desired outcome, but the performances have been good as well. We just need to refocus on the next challenge."
The Hearts boss is wary of the challenged posed by a Killie side, who are "fighting tooth and nail" for their Premiership future and have had an "upturn in fortunes" since Neil McCann and Billy Dodds took charge.
While Hearts are "enjoying where we are", McInnes stresses they are aware of "how quickly it can change". He adds: "If we can replicate a lot of what we've done between the start of the season and now then we'll put ourselves in with a chance. But with nine games to go, there's still almost a quarter of the season, 27 points to win, 27 points that you can lose."
He is predicting more "twists and turns" in the title race and aims to avoid "putting too much pressure" on his players - "Keep doing what we're doing. The squad looks calm."
McInnes says he's had Old Firm fans backing Hearts for the title if their team misses out. He explains: "I live in the west, so I normally get Rangers fans coming up to me and saying, if we don't win it, I hope you win it. And I get Celtic fans saying, if we don't win it, I hope you win it. That's nice."
He adds: "I think there's a lot of people out there who think it's still maybe a step too far for us as a team and a club, potentially. But we can't really get caught up in that, we've just got to concentrate on winning games of football."
Hearts take a 5,000-strong travelling support to Rugby Park for the 20:00 GMT kick-off and McInnes says: "We could play at four in the morning and I think our fans would be there, that's the way it feels at the minute."
Is Hearts boss Derek McInnes a more deserving candidate for manager of the year than Motherwell's Jens Berthel Askou?
Both were appointed last summer and both have their teams achieving far beyond expectations.
McInnes has Hearts on course for their first top-flight crown in 66 years while Askou's fourth-place Motherwell have an outside chance of the title and have won plaudits for their bold style of play and rock-solid defence.
The Dane has a win rate of over 48% and a points per game of 1.2 while his Motherwell side have scored 48 goals and conceded 20 (the fewest in the division). The Steelmen have won 14 league games, 10 of those victories have come at Fir Park.
Hearts are five points clear at the top with a win rate of over 65% and a points per game of 2.2. His Hearts side have scored 52 goals, conceded 24 and won 19 games - 11 at home, where they remain unbeaten.
And former Hearts midfielder Ryan Stevenson feels suggestions of anyone other than McInnes as manager of the year are well wide of the mark.
"It really annoys me the fact that people even just now will talk about the Motherwell manager as being manager of the season," he told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.
"I think it's absolutely outrageous.
"Jamestown's been brilliant, I get that. But if you've not got a guy there that can lead players, that can coach them, that can put an arm round them when they need it, or know when they need a kick up the backside, it's pretty pointless. And that's what Derek is.
"He's a tremendous man-manager. He's a tremendous tactical manager as well. People just don't give him credit where it's due.
"And don't be kidded, one of the main reasons that Hearts are where they are so early in this Tony Bloom era is 100% down to Derek McInnes."
Image source, SNSShould Hearts fans be worried about losing Derek McInnes to Scotland this summer?
Steve Clarke's contract as national team boss expires after the World Cup, by which time Hearts could well be Premiership champions.
McInnes, in his first season at the helm, has led the Tynecastle side five points clear at the top with just nine games to play.
The Hearts boss has been aided by Tony Bloom's Jamestown Analytics, as well as investment from the Brighton owner, but Liam Corbett of the This Is My Story podcast, says McInnes deserves more credit.
"Jamestown's great, we've had two shots of Jamestown's but we've only had seven months of Derek McInnes," he told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.
"Look at what he achieved with Aberdeen over eight years. That's what I'm the most excited about, that's what I was the most excited about at the start of the season and now that's all three of them working in harmony and I think we've seen the best out of all of them.
"The recruitment's been great but Derek McInnes is the one that's getting the best out of those players.
"I know he gets pats on the back but I don't think he gets anywhere near enough credit for the job he's done so far."
While Corbett isn't worried about further English interest in McInnes, who stressed his commitment to Hearts in January when linked with Leicester City, he has concerns over the Scotland job.
"Whatever happens in the summer, I think that's probably the one that could potentially turn his head, depending on what happens in the World Cup and what Steve Clarke decides," he said.
"I think he feels he should probably have had more respect across the board in Scotland with what he did with Aberdeen, what he's achieved with Kilmarnock and now what he's achieved with Hearts.
"If he starts to win trophies and titles, he won't leave that. You can see what he's like, it would have to take a monumental offer for him to move, and it would have to be the right project."
Hearts play Kilmarnock, Dundee, Livingston, and Motherwell before the split
Former Hearts midfielder Ryan Stevenson thinks if the Tyencastle club beat Kilmarnock on Saturday, the Scottish Premiership title is all but secured.
Derek McInnes' side are currently five points clear at the top with nine games remaining.
On paper, Hearts - who have only lost four of 29 games - look to have the easier run to the split of the title contenders. After the Rugby Park trip, McInnes' men complete their pre-split fixtures with home games against Dundee and Motherwell either side of a trip to Livingston.
"They're never going to win the league by only beating certain teams," Stevenson told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.
"What they've done the full season is be consistent. Any time they've had a blip, which they were always going to have, they've answered it with a positive performance and a win.
"The first blip they had, everybody thought the wheels would fall off and they didn't.
"The manager does not allow you to fester, he does not allow you to get in your own head. Hearts, for me, are the only team out of Hearts, Rangers and Celtic that look assured and accomplished.
"They've looked assure in all their performances, even when they haven't played well. Nine games now, it is absolutely nothing. I don't see them going into the split and losing to both Rangers and Celtic.
"Getting through the Kilmarnock game, which is a tough game. After the break of 10/11 days, if Hearts can go down to Rugby Park and put in a professional performance, get three points, you're then at eight games. I just do not see them losing.
"I think Saturday is so pivotal. They've been great, they've beaten all the teams around them and that's the only way you win leagues."
Greg Playfair
Fan writer
It's strange to think that despite Hearts not being in action during the past 10 days, we emerged from the weekend stronger than we started it.
I know cup competitions are a break from the league campaign, and each round is a one‑off game, but anyone who endured that Old Firm quarter‑final will tell you both sides are not in great shape.
Concentrating purely on the footballing aspect of that match, both sets of supporters were unhappy with how their side fared and have cause for concern heading into the final couple of months of the league season.
As a Hearts supporter, I'm quite happy for the narrative to be peddled that both Glasgow sides are the 'worst version' of themselves and are playing poorly. With that comes additional scrutiny.
It also allows us to go about our business and take care of each game as it comes in the background.
We have a five‑point lead with nine games remaining and are the makers of our own destiny. People might want to apply pressure or try to unnerve Derek McInnes' side, but we'll simply continue to do what we've done since late September and be content for the focus to remain on the downfall of other teams rather than how well Hearts have consistently played this campaign.
Jambos are one of the most reactionary fanbases, but I feel we're quite grounded heading into the next couple of months, and that is reflected in the messages McInnes continues to deliver when speaking to the media.
There's also a good portion of the support that remembers Dens Park 40 years ago - even I know all about it and wasn't even born - so we've learned not to count our chickens before they hatch.
We've got a tough match at Kilmarnock on Saturday evening and, despite their struggles in recent weeks, they'll pose a difficult challenge. I'd gladly accept a scrappy 1-0 victory.
Hopefully Cammy Devlin is fit enough to make the bench and perhaps make his comeback from injury in the second half to add some steel and energy.
Andrew Petrie
BBC Sport Scotland
Image source, SNSA lot has been made of Hearts' good record against top-six opposition this season.
As we approach the split, Hearts are five points ahead of Celtic, six ahead of Rangers and ten clear of dark horses Motherwell.
However, there are still four games to go before the split begins and, as we saw in the only Premiership game over the weekend, there is no margin for error.
Motherwell were unbeaten in nine league games when they turned up to Dens Park, and many would have predicted another victory for Jens Berthel Askou's impressive side.
But Dundee are no pushovers under Steven Pressley and that proved to be the case, as Fin Robertson slotted home a dramatic late winner for the hosts and dealt Motherwell's unlikely title changes a potentially fatal blow.
So what can Hearts learn from this?
Simple. There is no room for complacency in their next four fixtures, even if they look particularly winnable on paper.
First up, it's Kilmarnock away from home. The second bottom side, struggling in a relegation scrap. They're way down there in the form table, too, so an easy three points, surely?
Unlikely. A 3-0 win over Aberdeen and a 4-3 win over St Mirren show they can score plenty in front of their own supporters, while the 3-2 loss to Celtic had them two goals ahead before a late rally from Martin O'Neill's side.
Add into the mix Hearts' current injury crisis. There will be no Lawrence Shankland, no Stuart Findlay, no Stephen Kingsley, and no Ageu against Killie. There might be returns for Oisin McEntee and Cammy Devlin, but they won't be fully fit.
After that, it's Dundee at home. The form team in the bottom six. Nine points from their last six games have soothed any lingering doubts about Premiership survival and they have gone from strength to strength.
Looking back at last year, a 1-0 loss to Dundee at Tynecastle in the first game of the split proved to be the undoing of Neil Critchley. He was sacked in the aftermath. There will be no such drama this time, but will the fixture again prove a sliding doors moment?
The penultimate pre-split game is Livingston away. We've seen what Marvin Bartley's side are capable of on their day, just look at the 2-2 draw with Rangers. In August, it took Hearts until the 91st minute to find a winner through Alexandros Kyziridis.
But, this is a side rock bottom of the league, seven adrift with just one win in the league. Yes, they're fighting for their survival, but Hearts are fighting for a title.
Finally, the toughest of the lot. Motherwell at home. This could be the game it all hinges on. Points lost, ground made up, a door left ajar for their Glasgow rivals? Anything could happen.
How does Derek McInnes play it? Does he play to Hearts strengths, or try to negate Motherwell's entertaining, one-touch play? Should he try and bully the midfield, akin to the likes of St Mirren and Dundee, who got positive results with that method?
Only the head coach will know. But it's fair to say there won't have been as much riding on a Hearts v Motherwell game for a very long time.
Manager Derek McInnes says Hearts' "budget's going to be the same more or less next season" and believes the Tynecastle outfit are "only going to get better as a club". (Record), external
Celtic top scorer Benjamin Nygren feels there is enough time for the defending champions to catch league leaders Hearts in the title race. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external
