Dundee United have beaten Hearts 2-1 in tonight's Scottish Premiership clash at Tynecastle thanks to goals from Brian Graham and Nadir Ciftci, despite Danny Wilson's header making things tense for the Tangerines in the final stages.
The away side enjoyed the lion's share of possession in the opening stages as the Jambos, languishing at the foot of the table, struggled to push out of defence.
Just before the quarter-hour mark, Kevin McHattie's long-range drive was well held by Radoslaw Cierzniak, while a few minutes later, Graham handled the ball just before getting a shot in, invalidating his attempt.
Midway through the first half, Dale Carrick skilfully spun away from his marker, before firing in a low shot that Cierzniak just about managed to parry away.
Eventually, the away side drew first blood thanks to an Andrew Robertson cross which fell to Graham, who subsequently fired into the Jambos net from very close range.
The second half saw the Tangerines pick up from where they left off, Robertson threatening the Hearts goal twice after just five minutes played after the interval, while Ciftci fluffed his shot shortly afterwards.
Cierzniak nearly gifted the Jambos a fine goalscoring opportunity when he spilled a shot in the 52nd minute, but the home side couldn't capitalise on the opportunity.
Dundee United doubled their lead when Wilson was dispossessed and Ciftci cut inside and unleashed a powerful shot that rippled the Jambos net in the 70th minute.
However, the home side halved the deficit with just over 10 minutes to play when the 22-year-old Liverpool loanee made amends for his earlier mistake by heading home from Sam Nicholson's corner.
The result sees Dundee United tighten their grip on fourth place and move within four points of second spot, while Hearts remain rooted to the bottom with just six points from 30 games played.
Giuseppe Labellarte
