Jefferies says the 4-0 defeat by Celtic was a warning to his players

Hearts manager Jim Jefferies was left puzzled by his team's defensive collapse as they left Celtic Park on the wrong end of a 4-0 hammering.

Trailing to strikes by James Forrest and Anthony Stokes, Hearts imploded and surrendered their 11-game unbeaten run.

"How a team that's been playing so well defensively can play like that in the last 25 minutes - you wonder what goes through their heads," said Jefferies.

"They were all over the place. There were too many gaps; we assisted them."

Hearts had travelled to Glasgow boosted by Saturday's 1-0 home win over Rangers, the most recent of an impressive run of results that had lifted them to third in the Scottish Premier League and within touching distance of Celtic and the Ibrox side.

But their title ambitions were dealt a damaging blow as early as the seventh minute when James Forrest, back from his automatic one-game suspension for his sending off against Hamilton, blasted a cracking shot past Marian Kello.

And, eight minutes into the second half, Irish striker Anthony Stokes scored the first of his two goals on the night by curling a free-kick past the despairing Hearts goalkeeper.

It's hard to be too critical, the way they have been playing; tonight was a warning for them. Hearts manager Jim Jefferies

"They started really well and got that early goal," the Hearts boss told BBC Radio Scotland.

"As the game in the first half wore on, we got more competitive. I thought there was very little in it.

"In the second half, we have lost to a great free-kick and, for 10 minutes, we were all right. After that, it was a shambles.

"Marius Zaliukas was far too casual, the two centre-halves tried to play offside and got caught time and time again and didn't learn their lessons.

"It's hard to be too critical, the way they have been playing; tonight was a warning for them.

"We shot ourselves in the foot. We were 2-0 down to two great goals and then we have given them two and we could have given them more."

The defeat leaves Hearts 10 points adrift of Wednesday's victors, though the Tynecastle side have a game in hand. They host St Johnstone at the weekend before testing themselves against Rangers at Ibrox next Wednesday.

Jefferies' decision to remove fans' favourite Rudi Skacel at half-time may have guaranteed the Czech's involvement on Saturday.

Referee Euan Norris had already booked the midfielder and the Hearts manager felt that his substitution, for Ruben Palazuelos, was wise.

"I told him, 'you won't get away with another foul, you might even do it accidentally but you won't get away with it here, with the crowd and the reaction of the players'," said Jefferies of his discussion with Skacel at half-time.

"I thought he was unfairly treated a couple of times, when he won the ball, and then there were a couple he definitely should have been pulled up about.

"You can't afford to go down to 10 men. We had to take him off. It was the right thing to do."

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