GLASGOW — Hearts return to Celtic Park on Sunday (15:00 BST) for the first time since their title dream died in the space of 11 crushing minutes in May, when crestfallen players were bundled back onto the team bus in strips and boots before 800 travelling Jambos and thousands more back in Gorgie. Refreshed and reshaped under Wouter Vrancken, Hearts are embracing the trip to face Scottish Premiership champions Celtic, who remain under scrutiny after another chastening European defeat at Benfica and growing disgruntlement among their support.
Vrancken has demanded his side do not "live in the past", a message echoed by Oisin McEntee, who was part of last season's squad and insisted the visit is not a revenge mission. McEntee scored Hearts' opener in the 1-1 draw with Nordsjaelland as they opened their Conference League campaign, only to be denied a winning start by a late leveller. Josh McPake has scored or assisted six of Hearts' last seven goals from open play in the Scottish Premiership, while last weekend's 5-0 win over St Mirren extended a run of five victories and a draw in seven matches under Vrancken after a challenging introduction. The Gorgie side have won only two of their past 11 away league outings, failing to keep a clean sheet in that period. "I'm convinced the players will be [focused] on the game on Sunday and not in the past," Vrancken said. "You can't live in the past. You have to move forward and look forward, and you have to take on the next one. I hope the fire is there every game we play, and not only because something happened in the past."
Celtic arrive after a fourth defeat in five matches, a reverse of a 4-1 triumph in Lisbon on Thursday where Martin O'Neill's side crumbled in the first half of their Europa League loss to Benfica before improving after the break. The 74-year-old was upbeat about the second-half response, when Celtic scored once and could have added more, though they were also fortunate not to concede further. Unrest between fans and board remains in the backdrop, as it did last term, with supporters also growing restless at performances on the pitch. Despite that, Celtic have won 14 of their past 15 league games, scoring two or more goals in 11 of those.
History favours the hosts at Parkhead, where Celtic have won 26 of their past 29 home league games against Hearts, although they have lost two of the last six. Last term Hearts picked up seven points from four league meetings with Celtic — the most by any non-Old Firm side in a single campaign since 1999-00. O'Neill believes Vrancken's side are genuine contenders again. "I think it will be every bit as tough as it was on the last day of last season," he said. "I genuinely do [think they are title challengers]. I know they've lost two [league] games, but overall, I do, I think they can challenge."
Earlier this week influential Hearts investor Tony Bloom repeated his faith in his title ambition for the Tynecastle club, and Sunday offers an early indication of whether that can materialise this season. The fixture follows Celtic hosting Hearts in a top-of-the-table Premiership showdown that has framed the build-up as a test of credentials for both sides.