Claudio Braga has told the Old Firm that the pressure is all on them as they seek to knock Hearts off the top of the table come the end of the season.
Despite losing at Ibrox, Derek McInnes’ men are still in pole position in the Premiership title race with 11 games remaining — two points ahead of Rangers and three clear of Celtic, who have a match in hand.
Hearts remain well placed to become the first team from outwith Glasgow since Aberdeen in 1985 to lift the big prize.
And the Portuguese forward believes the domination of the big two in the intervening years ensures Hearts are the only one of the three contenders not feeling the weight of history on their shoulders.
‘No, I don’t feel we have that pressure because it’s 40 years now, right? So we’re doing something amazing,’ Braga said.
‘We’re proud of the work we’re doing. Of course, the more (points) we can get, the better. But the pressure, I think, is on the teams that normally win the league.
Hearts forward Claudio Braga insists his team have no need to be feeling the title pressure
Braga leaps into the air to celebrate giving his side the lead again with fellow scorer Leonard
Youssef Chermiti’s treble ensured Rangers beat Hearts at the third time of asking this season
‘So we have a good pressure. We just need to enjoy it as much as we can, try to go to games with a good mentality. And we’re still in first place, there’s still a lot to play for.
‘We have good fixtures now — most of them are at home. So, I think it’s all on us, to be honest.’
After suffering a loss on the road for the fourth time this season, McInnes said he didn’t have to remind his players that they are still in an enviable position as others in the dressing room spoke for him.
Asked who specifically said their piece, Braga added: ‘Everybody, to be honest. A lot of guys talked.
‘We don’t care who talks. Of course, the older guys and the guys that have more experience in this league normally talk a little bit more. And we listen to that.
‘But everybody can talk because we listen to everybody. It’s just saying (things that are) just positive. We need to be positive.
‘We’re very united in the locker room. Everybody has a lot of confidence with each other. And I think that’s what brings us here today.
Braga races off to celebrate his neat headed goal and he is embracing the title fight ahead
‘The way that we are playing and everything else is because we give our lives for each other.
‘You get the frustration. You feel the loss because it’s good to feel the loss. But as soon as we start the week, then we just need to start to focus on the next game.’
Hearts now turn their attention to a home game against Falkirk on Saturday, with Tynecastle also playing host to Aberdeen and Dundee over the next month.
Braga feels that run of fixtures can go a long way to ensuring the damage done on Sunday is repaired.
‘We’re still in a good position,’ he stressed. ‘It’s just frustrating, of course, when you go against a direct rival and know that we can do better.
‘To score two goals at Ibrox, that is not always easy and we still lost the game. So, that’s the frustration. But we know that we can just use that for a good thing, that is to win our next game.’
