IT was, to borrow from tabloid parlance, the perfect Finnish - and not the worst start to a Celtic career.

Teemu Pukki announced his arrival as a Parkhead player after his £2.4 million deadline-day move from Schalke 04 with a close-range header from the bench to seal a victory which the Parkhead side appeared to be making rather heavier work of than necessary.

Pukki's immediate impact might just have given Neil Lennon and the watching AC Milan scouts some food for thought ahead of Wednesday night's Champions League Group H opener at the San Siro.

There will be a clamour to include the Finnish international immediately, but that would seem rather unfair on Anthony Stokes. For the Irishman continued his excellent early-season form by earning the hotly disputed penalty which opened the scoring yesterday. Jamie Hamill was adjudged by referee Willie Collum to have used his hand to block Stokes's close-range header, even if he could hardly get out of the way.

Stokes scored the second in fine style after Jason Holt's deflected equaliser had briefly given their callow hosts parity on the scoreline, then laid the third on a plate for his grateful new Finnish counterpart. "As a striker I'm here to score goals," said Pukki afterwards. "So to get my first on my debut makes me happy. Stokesy did brilliantly with the perfect pass.

"It does take some pressure off me because as a striker it's your job to put the ball in the net. We now have a game against Milan, but I have only been here for two days so I'm not expecting too much. But of course I am ready if the manager decides I'm the man to start."

Hearts' outrage over the first goal was greater as Hamill was only playing because a previous sending off, against Inverness, was overturned when it was shown the ball had hit his face instead.

"Unfortunately for us, there was only one man in the stadium who thought it was a penalty and he is the most important one," said Gary Locke last night. "They say over the course of a season these things even themselves out so I am hoping that in the next couple of months we get a wee bit of luck because we are certainly not getting much at the minute.

"We didn't get an explanation from anybody, but if he is saying his hands are in an unnatural position that puzzles me because his hands weren't in an unnatural position from where I was."

From the start, Neil Lennon had rested Charlie Mulgrew following the exertions of international week, and given Dutch duo Derk Boerrigter and Virgil Van Dijk the chance to stake a claim for Champions League inclusion.

This they largely did, with Boerrigter posing a threat down the left. Van Dijk - the victim of a trial-by-TV incident involving Gavin Gunning a fortnight ago - got the benefit of the doubt after a clash with Calum Paterson left the young striker with a nosebleed.

Other contributions were more positive, not least the number of headers he won in his own box, while the former Groningen player should probably have had a goal when his extravagant backheel flew over from a corner.

"I thought Boerrigter was very good," said Neil Lennon afterwards. "He gives us that pace and thrust on either side of the pitch and I think Van Dijk is going to be a top player."

Kris Commons had fired over his team's first chance from one Boerrigter cross, but before long he also had the opener, wrongfooting Jamie MacDonald from the spot after Mr Collum's award on Hamill caused uproar around the stadium.

Stokes and Adam Matthews also went close for the visitors, before the Welshman had to leave proceedings with an ankle injury.

The was a sense of chaos about this game, with both sets of fans setting off flares at inopportune moments and Mr Collum's decisions frequently causing apoplexy.

A sense of wronged fury kept Hearts in the game, however, and after a spell of penalty-box pinball, Holt fired in a low drive which skipped off Efe Ambrose and Fraser Forster on its route into the bottom corner.

The Tynecastle side were unable to stay equal for long, however.

Commons cushioned a header into the path of Stokes, whose touch and finish were those of a man in form. Substitute Georgios Samaras could have made it three after more expert play from Boerrigter, but the script was written for Pukki, who headed into the bottom corner after a sweet run and a scooped pass from Stokes.