Derek McInnes lauded two-goal hero Landry Kabore for coming to the fore as William Hill Premiership leaders Hearts cranked up the pressure on title rivals Rangers and Celtic by easing to a 3-0 away win over nine-man Dundee United.
The Jambos struck early through Kabore and then doubled their lead with an Alexandros Kyziridis penalty shortly after home winger Amar Fatah was sent off for catching Marc Leonard on the ankle midway through the first half.
Kabore then sealed a comfortable victory after United substitute Pan Camara was dismissed for motioning his head towards Leonard as the rampant league leaders soared seven points clear of Rangers and nine ahead of Celtic. Both Glasgow sides play on Sunday.
Kabore has had to be patient this season, but an injury to top scorer Lawrence Shankland has paved the way for the Burkina Faso forward to start the last two matches.
“I thought Kabore led the line well,” said manager McInnes. “Obviously, a lot has been made recently about key players being out so you’re looking for somebody to take over that goal-scoring threat, and Kabore stepped up tonight.
“Two great goals, led the line brilliantly. And he was ably supported by a really strong Hearts performance tonight.
“We thought ahead of the game it was going to be a tough match for us. The pitch was difficult, but despite that I thought we settled in the game really well. I thought Marc Leonard in particular ran the game for us in there.
“I thought Kabore, (Claudio) Braga and Kyziridis gave us really good moments.
“We were kind of in charge of the game, I felt. I would have taken 3-0 all day long before the game, because we know Dundee United are a capable team.”
Rangers visit Hibernian while Celtic host Falkirk on Sunday, but McInnes is adamant his own team simply need to focus on their own business.
“I just always assume the teams round about us are going to win,” he said. “I think you’ve just got to go into your own game thinking it’s a game that we should look to try and win, home or away.
“Every game is becoming that bit bigger, so we’ve just got to take care of our own business. I don’t think you can ever, ever depend on anybody else to do you favours. It’s incumbent on us to try and win and do our job well.”
United boss Jim Goodwin disagreed with both red cards.
“It’s difficult to talk about the game as a spectacle after the 24th minute when Amar Fatah gets his red card,” he said. “I don’t see it as a red card.
“That was the turning point in the game as far as we’re concerned. It’s hard enough 11 v 11 against the league leaders but when you’re down to 10 with 70 minutes to go, it becomes even more difficult.”
