“It was a great evening,” said Critchley, who was experiencing European competition as a senior coach for the first time. “I loved it. Fantastic night. I felt we played a wonderful first half. We began with serious intent. Without the ball, we shown terrific aggressiveness. I think we played some terrific football as well, created a lot of issues and deserved to win.

“We looked quite comfortable in the second half, even without the ball. I wish we had done a better job of keeping the ball. But again, a clean sheet, two wonderful goals, and an excellent overall team effort.”

Hearts will host German Bundesliga side Heidenheim at Tynecastle in a fortnight, followed by travels to Copenhagen and Cercle Brugge. Their last encounter is against Petrocub in mid-December, and Critchley is fully aware of the club’s potential to advance.

“It puts us in a really strong position,” Critchley explained. “Six out of six, four games to go. I’m not sure when our next European game will be because we have so many upcoming games. But certainly, six out of six, I couldn’t have asked for more.”

Critchley believes his players’ moods are improving after a poor start to the season that lost predecessor Steven Naismith his job. “When you do things on the training pitch and you work and then the players feel that on the pitch and they get the rewards for it, obviously it helps in their belief in what we’re doing,” said the director of soccer. “I have to learn to trust them and they have to learn to trust me and that takes a bit of time, but obviously wins and playing well certainly helps.”

Spittal, who scored his third goal in three games with a spectacular shot, was singled out for special appreciation by his boss. The 28-year-old impressed as a roving creator behind the attackers, returning to his best form following a slow start to his Hearts tenure.