Christian Kouame impressively doubled Fiorentina's lead before half-time
Hearts were outclassed by slick Fiorentina in a Europa Conference League defeat at Tynecastle that deals a severe blow to their knockout hopes.
By the time of home defender Lewis Neilson's straight red soon after the interval, the Italians were already two goals up through Rolando Mandragora and Christian Kouame in a dominant display.
Luka Jovic made up for several misses with a late third to complete Hearts' misery as Fiorentina replaced Robbie Neilson's men in second with their first win of Group A.
And with trips to Florence and leaders Istanbul Basaksehir - who drew 0-0 away to Rigas FS - to come, the odds are firmly stacked against Hearts progressing beyond their first European group-stage campaign in 18 years.
- Reaction & as it happened
Fiorentina's shaky form - one win in 10 matches - had given Hearts reason to believe in a famous European triumph.
Those hopes were soon extinguished in a nightmare start, Mandragora running unopposed to plant a simple header beyond Craig Gordon from Aleksa Terzic's cross.
It was a sign of the dominance to come. Hearts sat deep and invited pressure that came in droves as Fiorentina pelted in 11 first-half shots while enjoying 71% possession.
Hearts were in danger of overrun as the Italians oozed quality. Jovic - who cost Real Madrid £50m three years ago - could have had a hat-trick in the opening half hour, while defender Igor ambled forward and had a rasping drive tipped wide drove.
The hosts were chasing shadows and, just as they looked set to make it to the break one down, Kouame acrobatically fired past Gordon after the defence failed to clear.
The only sliver of hope came right on the whistle when Josh Ginnelly was denied by goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini's flailing leg.
But within minutes of the restart, Hearts' comeback task took on mission impossible proportions as Neilson tugged Jovic's shirt as the striker broke clear and the red was brandished.
Gordon repelled efforts from Jovic and Terzic, while Riccardo Saponara curled over, but the third finally arrived when Kouame teed up Jovic to finally find the net and put a more realistic complexion on the scoreline.
Player of the match - Christian KouameThe Ivory Coast forward, left, looks a top operator. He scored one and set up another in his first start of the group stageMeek Hearts go down without a fight - analysis
Fiorentina are clearly a superior side, laden with quality, but Hearts were far too timid and neve gave themselves a fighting chance. They can count themselves fortunate that the Italians didn't match Basaksehir's four-goal win here.
A lack of aggression isn't often a criticism that can be levelled at Neilson's side, yet they didn't get close to Fiorentina and the manager's tactics will come under the microscope. The low block left lone striker Lawrence Shankland completely isolated in a chastening first half.
Hearts at least showed more grit and fight with 10 men than they mustered with 11. But overall it was a wretched evening for them and captain Gordon, 20 years to the day since his debut for the club.
What did they say?
Hearts manager Robbie Neilson: "We're disappointed with the result, but you've got to be proud of the players and the club to get to this level.
"The disappointment for me was that the three goals were preventable. For all the possession they had, and movement of the ball, the first two goals are just balls into the box that we really should deal with."
What's next?
Hearts visit Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday (15:00 BST) before completing their Fiorentina double-header in Florence next Thursday (17:45).
- Line-upsMatch StatsLive Text
Line-upsHearts
Formation 3-4-3
1Gordon20Neilson3Kingsley19Cochrane2Smith7Grant8Kiomourtzoglou16Halliday30Ginnelly9Shankland18McKay
- 1Gordon20NeilsonBooked at 48mins3KingsleyBooked at 25mins19Cochrane2SmithSubstituted forAtkinsonat 60'minutes7GrantSubstituted forDevlinat 53'minutes8KiomourtzoglouBooked at 56mins16Halliday30GinnellySubstituted forForrestat 76'minutes9ShanklandSubstituted forHumphrysat 53'minutes18McKaySubstituted forMackay-Stevenat 75'minutes
Substitutes
- 5Haring11Mackay-Steven12Atkinson13Stewart14Devlin17Forrest21Sibbick22Henderson27Smith28Clark29Humphrys
Fiorentina
Formation 4-3-3
95Gollini15Terzic28Martínez98dos Santos de Paulo3Biraghi5Bonaventura34S Amrabat38Mandragora99Kouamé7Jovic8Saponara
- 95Gollini15Terzic28Martínez98dos Santos de PauloSubstituted forMilenkovicat 45'minutes3BiraghiSubstituted forCordeiro Dos Santosat 74'minutes5BonaventuraSubstituted forZurkowskiat 87'minutes34S AmrabatSubstituted forBiancoat 74'minutes38Mandragora99Kouamé7Jovic8SaponaraSubstituted forGonzálezat 80'minutes
Substitutes
- 1Terracciano2Cordeiro Dos Santos4Milenkovic9Mendonça Cabral14Maleh16Ranieri22González23Venuti27Zurkowski31Cerofolini32Duncan42Bianco
Referee:Erik LambrechtsMatch StatsHome TeamHeartsAway TeamFiorentinaPossessionHome29%Away71%ShotsHome4Away25Shots on TargetHome2Away7CornersHome1Away10FoulsHome11Away15Live Text Post update
Match ends, Heart of Midlothian 0, Fiorentina 3.
90'+4'Full Time
Second Half ends, Heart of Midlothian 0, Fiorentina 3.
90'+1'Post update
Corner, Fiorentina. Conceded by Andrew Halliday.
90'Post update
Attempt blocked. Szymon Zurkowski (Fiorentina) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
87'Substitution
Substitution, Fiorentina. Szymon Zurkowski replaces Giacomo Bonaventura.
85'Post update
Attempt missed. Giacomo Bonaventura (Fiorentina) header from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Aleksa Terzic with a cross.
83'Post update
Offside, Fiorentina. Nicolás González tries a through ball, but Christian Kouamé is caught offside.
83'Post update
Attempt blocked. Nicolás González (Fiorentina) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
83'Post update
Attempt blocked. Alessandro Bianco (Fiorentina) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Christian Kouamé.
83'Post update
Aleksa Terzic (Fiorentina) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
83'Post update
Foul by Cameron Devlin (Heart of Midlothian).
80'Substitution
Substitution, Fiorentina. Nicolás González replaces Riccardo Saponara.
79'goalGoal!
Goal! Heart of Midlothian 0, Fiorentina 3. Luka Jovic (Fiorentina) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the high centre of the goal. Assisted by Christian Kouamé following a fast break.
76'Substitution
Substitution, Heart of Midlothian. Alan Forrest replaces Josh Ginnelly.
75'Substitution
Substitution, Heart of Midlothian. Gary Mackay-Steven replaces Barrie McKay.
75'Post update
Attempt missed. Lucas Martínez (Fiorentina) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Rolando Mandragora with a cross following a corner.
74'Substitution
Substitution, Fiorentina. Alessandro Bianco replaces Sofyan Amrabat.
74'Substitution
Substitution, Fiorentina. Dodô replaces Cristiano Biraghi.
73'Post update
Corner, Fiorentina. Conceded by Cameron Devlin.
73'Post update
Attempt blocked. Riccardo Saponara (Fiorentina) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Sofyan Amrabat.
Page 1 of 6rewindpreviousNavigate to the next pagenextNavigate to the last pageforward
Source: bbc.com