Balakov's strike unlocks Hearts

A textbook free-kick from Bulgarian internationalist Krassimir Balakov proved Hearts undoing last night despite an admirable defensive display against VfB Stuttgart.

It was testimony to the type of tactical game Jim Jefferies' side played in the UEFA Cup first- round tie that they managed to restrict the home side to only a few half-chances in open play.

That was mainly due to the organisation at the back, where Steven Pressley and Gordan Petric managed to keep the big, burly strikers like former Liverpool Sean Dundee in check.

However, they could not legislate for the way Stuttgart won the game through the quality of Balakov's free-kick in 33 minutes, although I believe referee Cosimo Bolognino of Italy got it wrong in the first place by awarding a free-kick against Hearts.

Full back Silvio Meissner had clearly overrun the ball when he collided with Petric just outside the area and the home side can count themselves fortunate that the award went their way.

What happened next was impossible to defend against, and although Hearts put goalkeeper Antti Niemi on the right-hand side of the goal line and Thomas Flogel on the left side to defend Balakov's free-kick, the midfielder simply managed to steer the ball over the five-man wall then over Flogel's head and under the bar and into the net for a goal of sheer precision.

Despite the defeat, Hearts will take a lot of confidence from the way they played and still have a good chance in the return leg at Tynecastle in two weeks' time.

However, the only question mark hanging over them in that game is whether they can create the early chances needed to put Stuttgart on the back foot because the Germans are a good counter-attacking side, as they showed in their 2-1 win against Bayern Munich in the Olympic Stadium last Saturday and are quite capable of scoring away from home.

Hearts and Stuttgart walked on to the pitch to the rather unusual signature tune of Three Lions On A Shirt, the English anthem for Euro96, which the travelling Tynecastle supporters, who numbered around 1500, did their very best to drown out.

The early exchanges were rather scrappy, with Hearts in the main being pinned back by the ferocious start made by the home side.

However, the spine of the Hearts team, which ran from Petric at the heart of the defence, through Colin Cameron in midfield, up to Flogel, leading the line in place of Gary McSwegan, who was on the bench, needed all their experience to hold things together.

Most of Stuttgart's early moves were coming through Bulgarian midfielder Krassimir Balakov, who was releasing Bradley Carnell and Ahmed Hosny down the Hearts right back channel in behind Grant Murray.

It was certainly the only area where they looked like causing Hearts problems, because left back Gary Naysmith and central defenders Pressley and Petric looked composed in the middle.

Despite being pinned back for the first 15 minutes, Hearts created two good chances within a minute and were unlucky not to take the lead.

First, Flogel found space out wide on the right and put in a good cross to Juanjo, who saw his shot blocked. The ball then fell to Fitzroy Simpson, whose shot was also blocked, and it then fell to Darren Jackson, whose left foot effort was not hit with any venom and spun into the arms of goalkeeper Timo Hildebrand with the aid of a deflection.

However, minutes after that chance, Simpson created something out of nothing as he danced round a clumsy challenge from right back Silvio Miessner on the edge of the area.

To his surprise, the rest of the Stuttgart defence backed off him and from just inside the area he had time to line up a low left-foot shot which Hildebrand did well to turn round his far post.

The strong Hearts defending made the Stuttgart midfield more frustrated and they resorted to speculative long-range efforts which did nothing to trouble Antti Niemi in the Hearts goal.

Indeed, from a Hearts point of view, it would have pleased manager Jefferies to see club captain managing to try a few positive runs from deep into the Stuttgart half as the Edinburgh club came increasingly into the game.

However, just as Hearts seemed to be gaining a foothold, they went behind in 33 minutes that textbook free kick from Balakov to give the Germans, on the balance of play, a deserved first-half lead.

Hearts were forced to make a change at half-time, with Lee Makel coming on for the injured Scott Severin.

Despite the change, the Tynecastle side continued to keep the Stuttgart strikers in check and Dundee, who was anonymous in the first half, was the only player to look like he would trouble the Hearts defence.

Their cause was not helped when Petric had to leave the field for nearly five minutes to have a bandage put on a head wound in which time the Hearts players did well to keep the ball.

The Tynecastle side seemed to grow in confidence in the second- half and in 58 minutes Cameron did well to get a long-range effort on target, which was gathered by Hildebrand in the Stuttgart goal.

The Hearts captain was coming more and more into the game and doing his best to release Juanjo, but the young Spaniard failed to make any impression on the Stuttgart defence, although he did forced Hildebrand into a save from a header on the 70-minute mark.

VfB Stuttgart - Hildebrand, Meissner, Thiam, Balakov, Carnell, Seitz, Soldo, Endreb, Lisztes, Hosny, Dundee. Substitutes - Trautner, Blank, Todt, Ganea, Schneider, Hleb, Pinto.

Hearts - Niemi, Pressley, Naysmith, Severin, Murray, Petric, Juanjo, Flogel, Jackson, Simpson, Cameron. Substitutes - McKenzie, Neilson, O'Neil, McSwegan, Makel, Kirk, James.

Referee - Cosimo Bolognino (Italy).

nReal Madrid said yesterday that day they had sold 100,000 replica shirts in the last 70 days, exhausting supplies at club shops.

Leading striker Raul's No.7 shirt is the biggest seller, followed by #37m world-record signing Luis Figo and established favourites such as Roberto Carlos and Fernando Hierro, the club said.