Armand Gnanduillet injury update as Robbie Neilson admits Hearts didn’t deserve to win in Dumfries
Neilson #Neilson
Liam Boyce’s 90th-minute penalty rescued a draw to move the league leaders 13 points clear as French striker Armand Gnanduillet sat out with a hamstring injury.
Ayo Obileye’s penalty late in the first half put Queens 1-0 ahead in front of the BBC Scotland cameras. Despite mounting Hearts pressure, they came close to holding out on Palmerston Park’s astroturf surface.
“We controlled a lot of the pitch but didn’t create as much as we wanted. The pitch makes it very difficult to get that final moment. You rely on the spin or bounce of the ball a lot of the time,” said Neilson
Sign up to our Hearts newsletter The i newsletter cut through the noise
“We’re disappointed not to take three points. Did we do enough to get the three? Probably not, in the grand scheme of things but we will take a point and move forward.
“You come here and you don’t know what’s going to happen on that pitch. You don’t know if it will break your way, spin behind you or what. Everyone is unsure so it slows the game down.
“You have to wait to see where the ball goes and it does affect the flow of play. We got a point, we’ve got 11 games to go and we’re 13 clear. We’re at Tynecastle on grass next week so hopefully we put on a good performance again.”
On Gnanduillet’s absence, Neilson explained that he did not want to risk the striker: “He’s just got a tight hamstring. We felt coming down here on this pitch, we have to be careful with players. He will train with us again next week and should be alright.”
Boyce’s performance was the pick for the visitors as the Northern Irishman linked play and used the ball intelligently playing as a lone forward.
He won and scored the penalty at the end to secure Hearts a point. “I thought he did well for us tonight,” he said. “He linked the game well but it’s just those final moments.
“I’ve been in the Championship with Dundee United last year and with Hearts before and you just don’t know what will happen on that surface down here.”