Celtic fans had watched their side lose four of the last five, the latest at Benfica on Thursday, and plenty of them arrived at Parkhead in a sour mood. They left having seen seven goals. Martin O'Neill's team beat Hearts 7-1 on Sunday, moved four points clear in the Scottish Premiership and handed last season's runners-up a lesson in what a title race looks like from the wrong end.
Two corners and the game was gone
It was effectively decided inside ten minutes. Hearts failed to deal with two early corners, Kieran Tierney scoring his first of the season from one and Benjamin Nygren converting the other. Haissem Hassan then smacked a shot off the right-hand post. Callum Osmand, starting for the first time in a Celtic shirt, scored twice in quick succession to make it 4-0 before the 40-minute mark, which is a decent way to introduce yourself.
A first half that ended 5-1
Laurent Mendy briefly gave Hearts something to hold onto with a fine curling finish, and Beau Reus in the visitors' goal made some good saves, one of them to keep out Nygren. It did not last. Just before half-time Mika Baur showed lovely skill to go through the defence, Stephen Kingsley's attempted clearance on the line came back off Jamie McCart and rolled in, and referee David Dickinson had not yet blown for the break. Camilo Duran made it six within four minutes of the restart with a first-time finish at the end of a flowing move, and Nygren slammed in the seventh late on.
What the managers made of it
O'Neill said his players grew in confidence after the first goal and carried it through the full 90 minutes, and he singled out the back four for praise. New Hearts head coach Wouter Vrancken blamed the two set plays at the start for killing his team's game and said the rest of the goals came from individual mistakes. It was his first visit to Celtic Park and he will want to forget it quickly.
Why it matters for the title
Hearts came in with one defeat in 13 in all competitions and more Premiership goals than anyone else, so this was not a team expecting to be taken apart. Celtic, by contrast, looked like the side that won its last seven league games last season, finishing with that final-day win over the same opponents. If they keep scoring like this, four points will take some overhauling for Rangers or anyone else.
Match facts: Celtic 7-1 Heart of Midlothian, Celtic Park, Sunday 18 October 2026, Scottish Premiership. Celtic: Tierney and Nygren (first ten minutes), Osmand 2 (both before the 40th minute, making it 4-0), Baur (just before half-time, 5-1), Duran (within four minutes of the restart, 6-1), Nygren (late on). Hearts: Mendy (before half-time). Referee: David Dickinson. Celtic are four points clear at the top.
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