Frank Schmidt’s tactical tweaks guide Heidenheim past Hearts

Frank Schmidt’s side made the trip to the Scottish capital for a meeting with Hearts on Matchday 3 of the Conference League this evening. Goals from Sirlord Conteh and Jan Schöppner ensured a 2-0 win in Scotland.

Heidenheim were under the cosh in an instant at Tynecastle as Lawrence Shankland stung the palms of Kevin Müller inside 3 minutes. The next significant attack afforded Shankland with another opportunity on the edge of the penalty area. Once again, Müller got down to produce a smart save. If not for the hard-working Maxi Breunig, Hearts centre-half Frankie Kent could have put his side ahead. However, Heidenheim’s striker did well to put him under pressure at the crucial moment. 

The maroon clad side from Midlothian maintained their pressure throughout an utterly dominant first-half. Alan Forrest looked to whip the ball home only to meet Tim Siersleben in the way. Unsure whether it was an enforced or tactical change, Frank Schmidt hooked off Busch for Traoré in the 37th-minute. Heidenheim eventually created a chance of sorts before the break, although Maloney’s header was cleared spectacularly by Boateng. 

A change upon the restart saw Mathias Honsak replace Mikkel Kaufmann and the impact was instantaneous. The Austrian slotted into the vacated left wing, skipped past the challenge of Baningime, and picked his spot in the box. Showing the Hearts’ rearguard a clean pair of heels, Sirlord Conteh headed the ball into the far corner with Craig Gordon powerless between the sticks. 

Paul Wanner arrived off the bench as the game wore on and almost linked up with Adrian Beck to extend the lead. Having got to grips with the physical presence of Shankland, Mainka and Siersleben managed to instill an air of calm in the Heidenheim defence. Eventually the result was put beyond doubt in the final minute of normal time – Pieringer sent Traoré down the sideline to find the head of Jan Schöppner as Heidenheim maintain their hundred percent record in the Conference League.