Walter Franken, the Hearts manager, has praised Ugandan winger Rogers Mato after he delivered an impressive performance at left-back during the clash with Mohamed Salah, in the match his side lost 2-0 to Trabzonspor in the UEFA Conference League, and did so despite a crippling list of absentees.
Hearts flew to Turkey without a host of key men in midfield and defence, still reeling from last Sunday's 7-1 hammering by Celtic.
The blows kept coming before kick-off. Left-back Harry Milne limped out of training at Papara Park on the eve of the game with a suspected anterior cruciate ligament tear.
Franken caught everyone off guard by handing Mato the left-back role to cover for Milne. The Ugandan winger repaid him with a superb display, sparing Hearts a heavy defeat after all the pre-match dread.
Salah put the hosts ahead from the penalty spot in the 32nd minute. The former Liverpool star then teed up Francolino for the second in the 58th.
Explaining his decision to field Mato at left-back, Franken told BBC Scotland: "Yes, I already spoke with him today, after Harry had to pull out of the match yesterday."
He added: "I spoke with Rogers today, and he was very clear during our conversation, as he said: no problem. And I told him some of the details regarding his position, as well as the task of marking Salah."
The manager went on: "I knew he was capable of keeping up with the pace in this position, and I also know that Rogers, when he is fully focused, is very strong in one-on-one duels, especially as he is primarily an attacking player."
He continued: "So, I am happy to see that it turned out this way, because if Salah had scored two or three goals, everyone would have said the decision was wrong and ill-advised, but you have to trust some players."
"When you see some players perform in positions other than their original ones out of necessity, that is a positive thing," he added. "We only had one player available in midfield, with six players injured. Jordi Altina also put in a superb performance in the midfield position, even though it is not his original position."
He concluded: "I am happy to see these things happen, and to be able to overcome the result of last week's match and deliver a good collective performance."