WE'D ALWAYS LOSE A GAME

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defeat of the campaign, with the Hoops also having a game in hand.

But defiant McInnes claimed a setback for his high-flying Jambos was inevitable and he backed his squad to react in the right manner.

McInnes said: "Do you know something, that’s going to happen - we were always going to lose a game.

“We wanted to keep that as far away from the door as possible, a defeat.

“You know and I know, a defeat was always going to come and we thought we'd done enough not to lose this game.

“We were a better team but if you don't show the quality we clearly lacked, you're not going to win at a place like Pittodrie."

Hearts arrived at the ground - a venue where they haven't won since 2016 - without injured frontman Lawrence Shankland, Eduardo Ageu, Beni Baningime and Craig Halkett.

But McInnes still felt his team deserved something.