Hearts friendly called off as game erupts into brawl
A friendly between Hearts and Spanish side Almeria has been abandoned after "altercations between both sets of players"
Last updated 4th Dec 2022
A friendly between Hearts and Spanish side Almeria has been abandoned after the match erupted into a brawl.
Video appears to shown an initial altercation between Left-back Alex Cochrane and one of the La Liga outfits players, with the Jambo defender left floored.
A melee between multiple players from both sides then ensues.
The club confirmed the game had been called off "following altercations between both sets of players."
Almeria had been leading the match 1-0.
Speaking to Hearts TV afterwards manager Robbie Neilson said they felt it was best to call the game off for the safety of his players: "It was a very competitive game and all of a sudden on the far side there was a tackle from Alex - which I thought was just a standard tackle - and then all Hell broke loose.
"Players running in, forearm smashes from their centre-half on Alex. The ref totally lost control of it. The benches were over and there was about 60 people on the pitch, it was a bit of a shambles.
"We just thought, pre-season, we've already got a number of injuries, there was no point in carrying on because tensions were extremely high to say the least."