• Stendel also gave players
Christmas Day off before 2-0 loss• Celtic beat St Mirren 2-1, Alfredo Morelos earns Rangers win
Hearts manager Daniel Stendel insists his return to
Germany this week had no bearing on the 2-0 defeat to Edinburgh rivals Hibernian. A first half Martin Boyle double handed the Leith outfit all three points at Tynecastle, and left their rivals rooted to the bottom of the table.
Eyebrows were raised before the match after Stendel returned to his homeland for personal business after the weekend’s 2-0 defeat to Hamilton and left assistant Andy Kirk to oversee the team’s preparation for the derby. The former Barnsley boss also gave the players Wednesday off despite playing a day later.