Beau Reus made two penalty saves as 10-man Hearts secured a dramatic shootout victory away to Rapid Vienna, booking their return to the Conference League main phase. The Scottish side won 4-3 on penalties after the second leg ended 2-2 following extra time, with the aggregate score level at 4-4.
Hearts were reduced to 10 men in the 75th minute when Tomas Magnusson received a second yellow card, while already trailing to Ercan Kara's first-half goal. Substitute Landry Kaboré equalised minutes later, and Calvin Miller volleyed 10-man Hearts ahead in the 100th minute. Rapid Vienna hit back in the 119th minute through Nenad Cvetkovic's goal, forcing the shootout.
Shootout heroics in Vienna
Miller, Jordi Altena, Rogers Mato, and Sabah Kerjota all scored from the spot for Hearts, with Oisin McEntee the only Hearts player to miss. Reus saved two kicks, denying Moulaye Haidara and Marco Tilio to emerge as the hero in Vienna.
The victory secured what may be Hearts' most significant European result in more than two decades, ensuring they will compete in the Conference League proper for the third time in five seasons.
Match details
Hearts suffered a blow in the 15th minute when Tom Renaud was carried off after Rapid attacker Petter Dahl fell awkwardly on his leg while being fouled by Altena. Magnusson replaced the Frenchman, but Hearts struggled early on, and the breakthrough came for Rapid in the 34th minute when Demir's low shot from the right took a nick off McEntee and broke kindly to Kara, who slotted into the empty net from six yards out.
Hearts were almost handed a way back when Cláudio Braga seized on a loose pass, but his angled shot from inside the box was beaten away by Niklas Hedl. After the break, Hearts captain Blair Spittal volleyed just wide from 20 yards out, before James Wilson and Braga both spurned opportunities.
Red card and fightback
Magnusson then sent a close-range header wide from a Spittal free-kick, but his night was cut short when he was shown a second yellow card for a trip on Jannes Horn in the 76th minute. Despite the setback, Hearts drew level within three minutes as Kaboré adjusted his body and chested Spittal's corner into the net at the near post, sending the game to extra time.
Hearts went ahead in the 100th minute when Miller acrobatically volleyed in a cross from substitute Mato. But just as Hearts looked like hanging on, Cvetkovic knocked in Haidara's cross in the 119th minute to force penalties.
Relief for Vrancken
Victory brought welcome relief for manager Wouter Vrancken after a punishing run of European results, with his side losing 6-0 on aggregate to Sturm Graz in the Champions League qualifiers. Hearts then lost 6-1 in Lisbon and 7-2 on aggregate to Benfica in the Europa League, dropping into the Conference League playoffs as a result.
"We played a really bad first half, a little bit similar [to] Benfica. We had a game plan and we didn't show the guts to follow up," Vrancken told BBC Scotland. "We were already pretty angry at half-time, and we came out, we did much better. We took the game in our hands, we were dominant."
"They have to learn that they're a good team, that they're good players, that they can show it and show the guts every time, every week, every game," the Belgian added. "Because in the last away games in Europe, you see that they're a little bit scared to do things, to take risks or to give spaces away."
"But the progress of the team is amazing. The team spirit, I saw it from the first session. They want to learn. They wanted to have feedback, they want to go into it and the kind of football we played. This is the result, they get rewarded, and I'm so happy for them."
