Midlothian Magic!

[Tracksuit Manager]

Introducing our first blog series ‘Midlothian Magic’.

Essentially, our test save turned out to be so addictive that I’ve decided to write about that instead. I got totally hooked on the save and thought that it could develop into a decent little story.

So ‘Midlothian Magic’, catchy isn’t it?

‘Midlothian Magic’ is a story about taking on Heart of Midlothian Football Club in Scotland, you probably know them as Hearts. The aim of the save is to challenge for silverware in Scotland and disrupt Rangers and Celtic, however we are going to need to get past Aberdeen and Hibs first.

Starting off with a very small budget it’s going to be difficult to bring players in, along with this our club culture is to sign players under 22 and develop players using our youth system. Luckily Hearts are blessed with some talented young lads that can push for a first team sport virtually straight away.

The squad on a whole has a very Scottish spine to it with John Souttar probably the stand out player who we will do well to keep hold of. English midfielder Sean Clare is the talented playmaker in the middle of the park and the Northern Ireland striker, Connor Washington could prove to be a deadly goal scorer in this league.

The season will kick off very earlier with the Betfred Cup Group Stages, so there is little time for pre-season camps in faraway places. Can we take our first cup competition by storm?

Let’s get on with the story, shall we?...

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

Breaking news: Hearts manager Craig Levein has been sacked by Chairman Anne Budge. Levein led Hearts to the Scottish Cup final last season but after a rumoured bust-up with the clubs board, Levein has been shown the door.

Anne Budge told the Daily Record “Craig has been a magnificent servant to this football club, and we wish him all the best for the future. It’s now time to move in a different direction and get this great club to the next level”.

2 weeks later…

This just in: Hearts have appointed Adam Robertson as their new manager, Robertson signs a two year deal with the club having been promoted from Under 18s manager. The former Hearts and Scotland international has been coaching since his early retirement in 2016. The tireless midfielder played 314 times for Hearts and had 14 caps for Scotland.

He told Sky Sports News “It’s a great honour for me to be appointed the managers of Hearts. I’ve been at this club for 12 years now; I know it like the back of my hand. I can’t wait to lead the team out this season”.

“We have great squad of players here with plenty of youngsters that I believe can make the step up to the first team. I’m already looking to bring quality players in, we’ve spoken to one or two clubs and we’ve given the green light”.

“We’re aiming to be in the top four by the end of the season and want to be competing in the cup competitions. We got to the Scottish Cup final last season losing to Celtic; we’re hoping to win it this season”.

Hearts Chairman Anne Budge told Sky Sports News “We are delighted with the appointment, Adam is one of the best coaches in Scotland and we have no doubts that he will take this club to the next level”.

“He will have our full support with bringing in players to the club. We will also be supporting him in bringing in his own backroom staff, with the imminent appointment of a Director of Football”.

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

Breaking news: Hearts have appointed Jim Jefferies as their new Director of Football. The former Hearts player and manager has been brought in to support new manager Adam Robertson, a decision which was made by Chairman Anne Budge.

Anne told TalkSport “Jim is absolutely the right man for this role, he share his wealth of experience with Adam. Jim’s been here and done it and the fans love him”.

“Yes, I can confirm that Craig Levein was a candidate for this role, but I felt the club needed something different”.

Jim Jefferies also spoke to TalkSport “I’m delighted, I’ve wanted to be involved for a while now, but unfortunately my health hasn’t allowed that. Now that I have fully recovered, I can’t wait to get started”.

“I met with Adam yesterday and we spoke at length about plans for this season. I have confidence in Adam’s ability, having had him as a player at Hearts I know the boy has passion and desire to succeed”.

“We will be sitting down this week with a number of players with a view to bringing them into the squad. We are talking to experienced players that have played in Scotland and in England. We are also in talks with players that have played at international level”.

“Austin McPhee will remain as the Assistant Manager, Adam has told me that he would like to keep Austin on board, he feels that he is a valuable member of the backroom staff”.

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

All the introductions are out of the way, no it’s onto the action…


Our pre-season was mainly just getting to grips with the playing squad, identifying our style of play and any gaps where we would need to bring players in.


Tactics


We went with a Custom Wing Play for our style of play with a 4231 formation. We are aiming to get the ball out into wide areas where we have the likes of Jamie Walker and Ryotoro Meshino. We are also looking to utilise the strenghts of Uche Ikpeazu by ensuring our wingers and wing backs deliver the high quality crosses to the target man.

Captain

No change in this category, Christophe Berra remains the captain of the club. The aging centre back is a leader, motivator and quite a good defender. He will be a vital player to the team helping the likes of John Souttar and Craig Halkett with their learning of the game.

Vice Captain

There is a new vice captain for this season, however we wont be telling you until our transfer special blog comes out fairly soon. All we can say is he is an international midfielder player, who has won the Champions League and five Premier League titles… Can you guess who he is?

The Midlothian Cup:

I love creating pre-season tournaments, you will notice that throughout all my blogs.

The Midlothian Cup, held at Tynecastle, invited three European clubs to compete for the newly formed Trophy, the teams involved were: ADO Den Haag, RC Lens and AS Saint-Etienne.

Midlothian Cup Semi-Finals:

Hearts 1 ADO Den Haag 3

An all round poor performance from the team. We played our stronger team in the first half with the youngsters give their chance in the second half. Our goal came from Irish left back Aidan White who happened to find himself at the back post for an over hit cross.

AS St-Etienne 2 RC Lens 0

Simple stuff for AS St-Etienne who stroll through into the Midlothian Cup Final, scenes!

Midlothian Cup Third Place Playoff:

Hearts 2 RC Lens 0

A better performance again RC Lens, arguably a stronger side. We kept a consitant team for this match, rotating well into the second half. Our goals came from one of our new signings and on our loan winger Ryotoro Meshino, he looks like he could be a special player.

Midlothian Cup Final:

AS St-Etienne 3 ADO Den Haag 0

Limbs at Tynecastle as AS St-Etienne lift the Midlothian Cup, this is something that these players will be telling their grandchildren in years to come.

What do you guys think, Midlothian Cup as a yearly competition?

Pre-season Friendlies:

With the monumental Midlothian Cup out of the way, we got stuck into three pre-season friendlies. Here is how we got on:

Hearts 1 RB Leipzig 0

We came up against some tough opponents in RB Leipzig and surprisingly won 1-0. It was a strong display by the team, we kept the ball well and got plenty of service to Uche Ipkeazu. Our goal came from Jamie Walker in the first half, cutting in from the left hand side, he curled it into the bottom corner.

RB Leipzig didn’t threaten much throughout the match. Our defensive stood strong with John Souttar having a great game in particular.

Hearts 0 Standard Liege 1

We rotated the squad from the RB Leipzig game and our performance dropped. Aidan White in particular had a shocker and was replaced by Aaron Hickey at half time.

Liege’s goal came from a corner, Sean Clare not tracking his man who thumped a free header passed on loan Manchester United goalkeeper Joel Pereira.

Peterborough United 1 Hearts 0

Our first away game was against English side Peterborough United. A nothing game really, where we predominantly played our fringe players and youngsters. The likes of Aaron Hickey, Jamie Brandon and Andy Irving played the full 90 minutes of this match.

Peterborough goal came from open play, we lost possession on the right hand side and we were punished for it. Glen Whelan who made his first appearance for the team was shown a straight red card for a lunge on the oppositions winger.

The next update will be around the Betfred Cup Group Stages, we’re in Group B. Can we avoid any upsets and progress through to the 2nd round?

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

We’re now in competitive action with the Betfred Cup Group Stages.

These group stage games kick off right in the middle of pre-season, however it’s a great opportunity to rotate your side in competitive fixtures. We were drawn in Group B alongside Montrose, Arbroath, Brechin City and Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

Here is how we got on in the group:

Montrose 0 Hearts 1

Overall a poor performance, we had players on the pitch that should have won this game comfortably. We were wasteful in possession and squandered a number of good chances. Our goal came from Jamie Walker on the left hand side, he cut inside and found the top corner of the net.

Montrose did not threaten at all, they sat back and absorbed our pressure. We need to improve in the final third…

Hearts 1 Arbroath 0

A better performance against Arbroath with a rotated side, we brought in Aaron Hickey and Andy Irving who were the two stand out players. We dominated possession and used our wingers well, the goal come early in the second half with Connor Washington finishing a wonderfully worked free kick routine.

Arbroath had chances but fortunately for us their striker never brought his shooting boots. Another 3 points which puts us at the top of the group.

Brechin City 0 Hearts 1

All these 1-0 wins, were like the Arsenal side in 2004!
Another average performance from players that I would expect better from. We did not look good in possession and our crosses were awful, we did not look up for this game at all. Our goal came in the 71stminute, a cross was headed to the edge of the area where Andy Irving volleyed it past the opposition goalkeeper.

Brechin City sat back and defended most of the game. They did venture out of their own half late in the second half but we easily had it covered at the back.

Hearts 1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 0

Another one as DJ Khaled once said…

In my opinion the toughest opponent in the group was Inverness, managed by former Hearts legend and my name sake John Roberton, what a guy! We actually put in a decent performance and were made to fight for the 3 points. The goal came early in the second half from another one of our new signings, a sublime free kick dipped over the wall and into the bottom corner.

Inverness came with a game plan and executed it quite well. They were tough to break down and fairly quick on the break. Definitely a team that I tip for promotion form the Championship this season.

Group B Table:

Here is how the group B table looked after all rounds of fixtures.

We top the group with Arbroath in second, surprisingly Inverness finished third.

Betfred 2nd Round Draw

Hearts vs Falkirk

The next update will be around our transfer during the summer, we’ll go into detail on our new signings and who we just missed out on.

Thanks for reading.

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

Ah, Jim Whyte. Who else has had enough of him now?

Despite having next to no money in the window we managed to spend £610,000 on transfer fees, We also managed to bringin a total of £158,000 on player sales.

Overall I was delighted with this transfer window, we brought in some high quality players with interational experience and a few Premier League winners medals. We also managed to sell on some players that were not in our plans, this helped with our wage bill for the incoming players.

Let’s see who we managed to bring in:

Darren Fletcher

Our first signing for the club was the vastly experienced Darren Fletcher. The former Manchester United and Scotland midfielder who boasts one Champions League winners medal and five Premier League titles joined our ranks on a free transfer.

The ball winning midfielder was an ideal option to bring in. Not only is he a fantastic player still, but he is perfect to have around players like Andy Irving. He was also given the 24 shirt that he has worn throughout his career.

We decided give Darren the vice-captaincy, it’s a no brainer isnt it. He has captained Manchester United, Scotalnd and a host of other clubs too. We didn’t want to take the armband of Christophe Berra, but Fletcher is the ideal captain for when Berra is not in the team.

Ross Wallace

Our second signing was 33 year old Scottish winger Ross Wallace. The former Burnley and Sheffield Wednesday star also joined us on a free transfer after leaving Joey Barton’s Fleetwood Town in the summer.

Wallace adds much needed squad depth in the wides areas as width is going to be a key focus for us this season. The experienced Scot also boasts one Scottish Premier League title, one Scottish Cup and a Scottish League cup all during his time at Celtic. He also got his only cap for Scotland in 2009 whilst at Preston North End.

Wallace was given his prefered number 33 shirt.

Stipe Vucur

We were in the market for a centre half as we feared John Souttar was on his way out. Unfortunately St Johnstone were not willing to budge on their valuation of Jason Kerr and Celtic’s Jack Hendry wanted ridiculous wages.

We stumbled across Hajduk Split centre back Stipe Vucur (Croatian leageus loaded, I’m a big fan). Our scout came back to tell us that he would be a great addition to the sqaud and that we could for between £100,000 and £150,000. We attempted to loan Stipe but it didn’t work out, then two bids were turned down before agreeing on £110,000 in one 12 month installment.

The Austrian defender is strong, good in the air and also a decent passer of the ball and at a push can play as a defensive midfilder. Vucur was given the number 15 shirt.

Zander Clark

*Forgot to get a screenshot*

The one area I wanted to strengthen most was between the sticks. I wasn’t happy with our current goalkeepers, although Joel Pereira is good I didn’t feel he was going to be good enough to get us where we wanted to be this season.

Zander is a player I really like, he’s a good goalkeeper, still quite young and he’s scottish too. St Johnstone were very stern in their negotiations for Zander, however we did manage to agree on £500,000 in one 12 month installment, a big fee but one I feel is fully worth it.

We gave Zander the number 13 shirt which was free due to the depature of Colin Doyle.

Here is a little look at our depatures in this window:

Colin Doyle

Just mentioned about, Colin Doyle left the club this window to join Ross County for £115,000, virtually paying for Stipe Vucur. The experienced goalkeeper was on a decent wage which we felt he did not deserve. He was stuck in the reserves when we arrived and didn’t look like getting anywhere near the first team.

Clevid Dikamona

I’m not going to spend too much time on this guy as he really is a terrible defender. Again another player earning a decent wage and not deserving it. We managed to offload Clevid to Yehuda Te Aviv for £28,500.

Dean Ritchie

Dean Ritchie is a young defensive midfielder who has come up through the youth system. St Johnstone put in a bid of £14,500 for him and I felt his time at Hearts was up, plus it might have helped in our pursuit of Zander Clark.

That’s it for our summer transfer dealings, how did you think we got on? Do you think our additions are good enough to help us reach the top 4 and qualify for the Europa League?

Also let us know if you are enjoying the series, I’m having a lot of fun writing this and would love to hear your feedback!

Thanks for reading.

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

Match Day Live: Hearts vs Celtic
Ladbrokes Premiership
3/8/19 at Tynecastle
12.30pm kick off

Press Conference

Adam Robertson (Manager)
“We’re really looking forward to the season ahead, we’ve recruited well and the lads are in great condition at the moment. We’re confident of challenging for the top four and qualifying for the Europa League”.

“The lads have been training really well recently; there is a real vibrancy within the squad. I have an idea of the team that I will be picking, those starting will find out on Friday”.

“Jamie Walker has been brilliant since I come in, he’s playing with confidence and I hope that he can take it into the match against Celtic”.

“Andy Irving and Aaron Hickey have both really impressive in pre-season and they will be in the squad for Saturday”

Christophe Berra (Player/Captain)
“We’re looking good; we have the players here to do something special this year. Robertson is a great capture for the club, we have no doubt he will improve this club”.

“Having Darren Fletcher with the squad is a massive bonus. He’s an incredible player and someone that has been there and done it. He still trains like he is 21 too”.

“There is a lot of experience in this side, the likes of Fletcher, Whelan, Naismith and Wallace will be so important to the development of the young lads coming through the youth side”.

Build up

Team Selection
We selected the best team available to us whilst considering players for in pre-season. One play included particularly shone in pre-season and has the potential to be a superb player, that’s is Andy Irving who plays alongside Darren Fletcher. Aidan White got the nod ahead of Aaron Hickey, Aaron has also been great in pre-season, but we thought we would play it fairly safe against the champions.

We decided to play Craig Halkett over Christophe Berra because of the threat of Odsonne Edouard. The pace of Berra absolutely scared us when coming up against a side of Celtics quality, could this decision come to haunt us?

Starting XI
Pereira
Brandon
Souttar
Halkett
White
Fletcher
Irving
Clare
Wallace
Walker
Ikpeazu

Subs
Zlamal
Berra
Hickey
Damour
Naismith
Meshino
Washington

First Half
The first half started off with a bang! Aidan White flew into a tackle with James Forrest. With my heart in my mouth the referee only decided to caution the Irishman.

Celtic dominated possession and had a number of chances to take the lead, albeit for some excellent defending from both Souttar and Halkett. James Forrest seemed to have the key to Edinburgh on the right hand side with Aidan White struggling to contain the Scotland international, however Callum McGregor struggled to find his way past young right back Jamie Brandon.

John Souttar was cautioned towards the end of the first half for a miss timed tackle on Odsonne Edouard. The resulted free kick taken by Olivier Ntcham was comfortably saved by Joel Pereira.

Neil Lennon showed his frustrations on the side-line as his side could not find the breakthrough, whilst Hearts manager Adam Robertson encouraged his team keep the ball and look for early crosses to Uche Ikpeazu.

Half time; Hearts 0 Celtic 0.

Second Half
With both teams refreshed from their half time oranges, it was Hearts who came flying out of the blocks. A well worked free kick found Uche Ikpeazu lurking at the back post only for Fraser Forster to pull off an outstanding save. Celtic were rattled…

Hearts were on the front foot again, the ball was played out to Jamie Walker on the left hand side who skipped passed the Celtic right back and swung the ball towards the back post, unfortunately there were no takers.

Hearts were then awarded a corner, Ross Wallace delivered the cross and an unmarked Uche Ikpeazu nodded the ball straight passed the Celtic goalkeeper. The Celtic players stood and looked at each in confusion, Hearts players rushed to the corner to celebrate their first goal of the season, could they be on their way to beat the champions?
Hears 1 Celtic 0.

Neil Lennon reacted furiously to Hearts goal and demanded more from his players. Within minutes of Hearts goal, whilst some fans were still celebrating, Celtic moved up a level. James Forrest who had tortured Aidan White all afternoon skipped passed him once more and cut the ball back to the deadly Odsonne Edouard, he placed the ball precisely passed the Hearts on loan goalkeeper, devastation!
Hearts 1 Celtic 1.

Celtic tasted blood, they brought on Scott Sinclair in place of French midfielder Olivier Ntcham and went for bust. Jamie Brandon was now in a game as Sinclair moved the left hand side, he was beaten by a sublime piece of skill from the Englishman only for him to over hit his cross.

Celtic continued to attack, Scott Brown received the ball from Greg Taylor but was tripped by Sean Clare, the referee was quick to pull out a yellow card. The ball was delivered into the box where Christopher Jullien headed the ball goal wards, however it was easily collected by the Hearts goalkeeper Joel Pereira.

It was Hearts turn to turn up the heat. Aaron Hickey replaced Aidan White and Ryotoro Meshino replaced Jamie Walker, they both made an immediate impact. A clever one-two sent Meshino down the byline, he shaped up to cross but was cynically taken out by Hatem Abd Elhamed, the referee was sprinted over to show him a yellow card.

The game was end to end, which changes for either side, however neither could capitalise.

The home side had the last roll of the dice when Ross Wallace was tripped by Boli Bolingoli, who received the fifth caution of the day. The resulting free kick was floated in where Craig Halkett met the ball, his header was on target but was not good enough to beat Fraser Forster.

The referee blew the final whistle to end what was a thrilling game;
Hearts 1 Celtic 1.

Man of the match
The stand out player was Odsonne Eduoard, the Celtic striker held the ball well and linked with his midfielders. He was dangerous on the attack and forced a number of saves from Joel Pereira.

Needs to improve
Aidan White. Admittedly run ragged by James Forrest today, White never showed anything special going forwards or tracking back. He is in danger of losing his place to Aaron Hickey, who looked good when he came on.

The next update will be our Betfred Cup 2nd round game against Falkirk, get set for eventful game…

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

Match Day Live: Hearts vs Falkirk
Betfred Cup 2nd Round
17/08/2019 at Tynecastle
19:30 kick off

Press conference

Adam Robertson (Manager)

“I was impressed with our performance against Celtic in our last match. We forced mistakes and made them pay for it. Hopefully we can keep up the same intensity throughout the season”.

“We’ve made a few changes for rotation purposes; we don’t have any injuries at the moment within the squad. This is an opportunity for players like Brandon and Hickey to stake a claim in the first team”.

“Craig Halkett played really well against Celtic, he’s just being rested for this match. Aaron Hickey has been training out of his skin and deserves to be in the starting lineup.

“We want to as far as possible in this competition. I feel this is an ideal opportunity to challenge for silverware and bring some success back to Tynecastle”.

Uche Ikpeazu (Player)

“I am really enjoying myself at the moment. I’m in good form and feel like I can have a very good season”.

“The team is great, most importantly for me we have good crossers of the ball so it gives me the service I need to do what I do”.

“I want to win; it’s a simple as that. I come to Hearts to challenge for silverware and I think we have the squad to do that”.
“I want to win; it’s a simple as that. I come to Hearts to challenge for silverware and I think we have the squad to do that”.

Build up

Team selection

We decided to rotate slightly for this game bringing in the likes of Berra, Hickey and Damour. We are aiming to use as much of the squad as we can this season, something that Hearts have suffered with of late is lots of injuries so we could do with avoiding that. Walker, Wallace and Ikpeazu are playing really well together and we didn’t want to disrupt that so they will start this game.

Irving, Mulraney and Naismith are players on the bench today that we will be looking to give minutes. Irving is developing really nicely and I can see him pushing for a first team place fairly soon. Naismith is obviously a fantastic player but I will be looking to utilise him as a shadow striker/attacking midfielder rather that up top.

Starting XI

Pereira
Brandon
Souttar
Berra
Hickey
Damour
Fletcher
Clare
Wallace
Walker
Ikpeazu

Subs

Zlamal
Halkett
Smith
Irving
Meshino
Mulraney
Naismith

First half

The referee blew his whistle to start the first half, Hearts played the ball back to Souttar who immediately looked for Ikpeazu up top, Falkirk’s Gregor Buchanan would the first header of the game and Hearts were awarded a throw in.

6 minutes in, a Falkirk attack broke down and Hearts burst out of the blocks. Aaron Hickey raced forward and played the ball to Ross Wallace on the right hand side, he dropped his shoulder, cut inside and hit a low fizzing shot across the keeper. The keeper got a hand to the shot but couldn’t prevent it rippling the back of the net.

Hearts 1 Falkirk 0.

Hearts were dominant for the next 20 minutes but could not breakdown the Falkirk defence. The home side worked the ball well and were putting in quality crosses; however Uche Ikpeazu couldn’t find himself on the end of any of them.

Falkirk eventually found themselves out of their own half. A hoofed ball found the head of former Hearts player Conor Sammon who flicked it in behind Christophe Berra, Declan McManus nipped passed the aging centre half a poked the ball past Joel Pereira, route one football gets Falkirk back in the game.

Hearts 1 Falkirk 1.

Hearts continued to venture forward but seemed to lack creativity in the middle of the park. French midfielder Loic Damour looked out of depth, regularly losing possession and getting bullied off the ball.

The referee blew his whistle dead on 45 minutes.

Hearts 1 Falkirk 1.

Second half

No changes at half time, both teams came out searching for the winner.

The second half started in Falkirk’s favour when a deep cross was met by Conor Sammon, Joel Pereira saved well and parried the ball out for a corner. The resulting corner was delivered to the back post where Gregor Buchanan headed wide.

Falkirk continued to push the nervous looking Hearts side; on the hour mark they earned themselves another corner. Again the ball was whipped to the back post where a familiar Gregor Buchanan met the ball, this time his header found its way past the unsighted Joel Pereira.

Hearts 1 Falkirk 2.

Hearts manager Adam Robertson stood on the touchline encouraging his players, they looked dejected and out of the game. Sean Clare was brought off for Steven Naismith who sat in behind Uche Ikpeazu, would this spark a bit of creativity within the side.

Naismith made a little difference; Falkirk had to readjust their formation to pick up the former Scotland international which in affect caused more space for players bursting forward. Further changes for Hearts saw Andy Irving and Ryotoro Meshino come on for Loic Damour and Jamie Walker.

Hearts continued to test the Falkirk defence who remained strong. Ryotoro Meshino tormented the Falkirk right wing back Lewis Toshney who was eventually brought off for Gary Miller.

That change proved to be a bad one when Gary Miller switched off and let Ross Wallace run in behind him, a perfectly weighted ball from Andy Irving found Wallace who dinked it to the back post. Most of the Falkirk defenders surrounded Uche Ikpeazu desperate not to let him jump for the ball, however it evaded everyone and fell to Jamie Brandon who was arriving at the back post. He volleyed the ball past Robbie Mutch and put Hearts back in the game.

Hearts 2 Falkirk 2.

The home crowd roared the team on to get a winner and their prayers were answered when Aaron Hickey skipped past Gary Miller to deliver an unbelievable cross towards the penalty spot. Uche Ikpeazu nudged his marker out of the way and rose like a salmon, he met the ball with power and thumped it onto the post and in. Falkirk players dropped to the ground in devastation whilst the Hearts players celebrated with fans behind the goal.

Hearts 3 Falkirk 2.

There was no time for Falkirk to find an equaliser. The referee blew his whistle and ended an entertaining second half.

Man of the match

Ross Wallace was awarded man of the match. The winger had a brilliant game opening the scoring and providing the assist for Hearts second goal. He constantly asked questions of the Falkirk defence with his excellent crosses and smart runs.

A close second would have been Aaron Hickey who performed brilliantly in this match. He provided two assists and whilst also carrying out his defensive duties in superb fashion.
Needs to improve

Loic Damour, the French midfielder looked well of the pace today and was brought off during the second half. He let himself down in possession and was easily pushed off the ball. Unfortunately for him, Andy Iriving came off the bench and instantly made an impact. He’s going to have to train hard to get back in this side.

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

All in all August was a pretty good month for us. 3 wins out of 5 and a well fought draw against the champions Celtic.

As this is an update post I want to keep it short and sweet so that we can get back to the action…

[LEAGUE] Hearts 1 Celtic 1

As detailed in the match day live post we kicked off our season against Celtic at Tynecastle.

During the game we battled hard and managed to take a share of the points. The first goalscorer of the seasons was English striker Uche Ikpeazu who continued his impressive pre-season form.

Celtic striker Odsonne Eduoard tormented us for most of the game but our defence put in a fine performance to keep us in the game.

[LEAGUE] St Mirren 0 Hearts 1

Our first away of the season came against St Mirren. The paisley side are one of the favourites to go down this year, would this prove to be an easy three points?

No. St Mirren put in a really good performance, testing our defence and asking questions of our midfield. The breakthrough come when Ross Wallace headed in a cross from Jamie Walker in the second half.

St Mirren had a late shout for a penalty for the referee bravely waved play on. No one will be buying him a pint in Paisley anytime soon.

[LC] Hearts 4 Falkirk 3

You will have seen form our most recent match day live post that we met Falkirk in the 2nd round of the Betfred Cup. The game was a thriller, with Hearts coming out on top.

The match was end to end entertainment. Falkirk went ahead on the hour make and forced Hearts to make changes. The changes took full affect with the home side equalising with four minutes to go.

There was more late drama when Hearts striker Uche Ikpeazu headed home a last minute winter to put Hearts through to the quarter finals where they would meet Aberdeen.

[LEAGUE] Aberdeen 2 Hearts 1

Match day 3 was a tough one, we come up against Aberdeen. Derek McInnes named a strong side and decided to start a war of words against me pre-match, let’s have it.

We shot out of the blocks with an early goal. Steven Naismith, who was playing just I’m behind Uche Ikpeazu, finished an excellent cross from full back Aaron Hickey.

However Aberdeen dominated the rest of the match. Sam Cosgrove scored both goals for the home side directly from corners, that’s us doing some corner drills in training tomorrow!

[LEAGUE] Hamilton 3 Hearts 5

The last game of the month was a thriller. We travelled to Hamilton to pick ourselves up after the Aberdeen loss, and my word the lads put in a performance.

We were 3-0 up after 30 minutes, playing some excellent football, with Sean Clare scoring a brace. Hamilton managed to pull a goal back just before half time.

The home side scored early in the second half, but further goals from Wallace and Ikpeazu put the game to bed. Three more points, and onto the next.

Betfred Cup Quarter Final Draw

As mentioned above we were drawn at home to Aberdeen in the 2nd round of the Betfred Cup, could we get revenge for the loss at Pittodrie?…

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

Match Day Live: Hearts vs Aberdeen
Betfred Cup Quarter Final
24/9/19 at Tynecastle Park
19:30 kick off
Attendance: 14,567

Press conference

Adam Robertson (Manager)

“I’m really pleased with our performances throughout August. We are playing some excellent football of late; our confidence is starting to show”.

“The Hamilton game was particularly pleasing; we showed how clinical we can be. Sean Clare was unplayable in that game and I hope he takes that performance into the Aberdeen game”.

“I have no doubt that we can go all the way in this competition. We’re all here to win; it’s as simple as that”.

John Souttar (Player)

“I think it’s shown in the last few matches that the team is ready for a challenge this season. We are all determined to do well this season”.

“I had an opportunity to leave the club this summer and after sitting down with the manager and discussing the clubs aims this season and next, it made me want to stay”.

“I want to up my game this season and push for a place in the Scotland squad, I’ve had conversations with Steve Clarke previously and hope to be involved at some point this season”

“The Betfred Cup is a competition we should be targeting; we are a win away from taking the fans back to Hampden. It’s a special place to play and I want to be walking up those stairs to lift the cup!”.
“The Betfred Cup is a competition we should be targeting; we are a win away from taking the fans back to Hampden. It’s a special place to play and I want to be walking up those stairs to lift the cup!”.

Build up

Team selection

Aberdeen proved to be no pushovers in our game against them in the league, it was important to name a strong squad if we wanted to progress to the semi-finals.

A few players were not 100% fit the match today which meant we had to rotate. Aaron Hickey who has been excellent of late dropped to the bench, with Aidan White taking the left back spot. Stipe Vucur replaced Craig Halkett who was still recovering from the last match and Ryotoro Meshino dropped to the bench for Jamie Walker.

Connor Washington, who has been training very well of late, stays on the bench as in-from Uche Ikpeazu, he cannot stop scoring at the moment.

Starting XI

Pereira
Smith
Souttar
Vucur
White
Fletcher
Irving
Clare
Wallace
Walker
Ikpeazu

Subs

Zlamal
Halkett
Hickey
Damour
Meshino
Naismith
Washington

First half

The match started slow with both sides hesitant to throw men forward. Hearts made the first move with an attack down the right, a cross from full back Michael Smith was defended well by Aberdeen centre half Scott McKenna.

It was then Aberdeen’s turn to venture forward, Niall McGinn skilfully beat Micheal Smith and delivered a low cross. Sam Cosgrove managed to get himself on the end of it but couldn’t get his shot on target.

Aberdeen threatened again. Former Manchester United player James Wilson burst down the right and swung the ball to the back post to the oncoming Niall McGinn, his volley shaved the crossbar and was caught by one of the home fans.

The breakthrough come late in the first half. Aberdeen had dominated most of the first half and finished it off well. Niall McGinn who had been unstoppable this half, skipped past the Hearts full back. He played a one-two with striker Sam Cosgrove and curled the ball into the far corner.

Hearts 0 Aberdeen 1.

Hearts were awarded a corner right at the end of the first half. The ball was whipped in by Jamie Walker and met by John Souttar. His header was ferocious but was no match for Aberdeen goalkeeper Joe Lewis.

The referee blew the whistle to end the first half;

Half time; Hearts 0 Aberdeen 1.

Second half

Hearts made a change at half time. They decided to bring off Sean Clare, who had been brilliant in the previous game and replace him with Steven Naismith. Naismith was deployed just behind Uche Ikpeazu in a shadow striker role.

It was Hearts that started the second half better. They kept the ball and worked the wings well. Jamie Walker got the better of Shay Logan and found Uche Ikpeazu with his cross, only for his header to be saved by Joe Lewis.

The home side then managed to find their way back into the game. A corner was taken by Jamie Walker, it was floated to the back post where it was met by Austrian defender Stipe Vucur, he headed the ball towards the ground where Joe Lewis couldn’t get down quick enough.
The home side then managed to find their way back into the game. A corner was taken by Jamie Walker, it was floated to the back post where it was met by Austrian defender Stipe Vucur, he headed the ball towards the ground where Joe Lewis couldn’t get down quick enough.

Hearts 1 Aberdeen 1.

Unfortunately the home side were not level for too long. Aberdeen piled on the pressure from kick off and an excellent through ball by Shay Logan found James Wilson who dinked the ball over Manchester United loanee Joel Pereira.

Hearts 1 Aberdeen 2.

Aberdeen broke forward again after a Hearts attack failed, Niall McGinn picked up the ball on the half way line and headed towards goal. Hearts skipper for the day, Darren Fletcher took one for the team and tripped McGinn from behind. This caused a scene as players from both teams began to push and shove each other. Aberdeen were awarded a free kick and Fletcher was booked for his foul.
Hearts were chasing the game, when a mistake by Michael Smith let James Wilson in behind. He cut the ball back to Aberdeen midfieder Jon Gallagher who fired the ball past the Hearts goalkeeper.

Hearts 1 Aberdeen 3.

The home side were out of gas. Not even Ryotoro Meshino could come up with some magic to get them back in the game. The second half fizzled out and the Aberdeen fans were in full voice.

The referee ended the game, Aberdeen were off to Hampden.

Full time; Hearts 1 Aberdeen 3.

Man of the match

Niall McGinn. He was easily the best player on the part today. He was brilliant to watch, making three key passes throughout the game, assisting one goal. Michael Smith won’t want to come up against him again anytime soon.

Needs to improve

Michael Smith. As mentioned above he was tore apart by Niall McGinn today, If we would have had Jamie Brandon on the bench, Smith would have most definitely been taken off early.

 

[Tracksuit Manager]

Match Day Live: Rangers vs Hearts
Ladbrokes Premiership
28/9/19 at Ibrox Stadium
15:00 kick off
Attendance: 50,817


Press conference

Adam Robertson (Manager)

“We’re obviously disappointed with the Aberdeen result. That one will probably hurt for a while. We had to lift our heads up and concentrate on the game against Rangers now”.

“It’s going to be a really tough game. Rangers have some excellent players and I think that they will push Celtic close this year”.

“The Morelos injury doesn’t make it easier for us, they have Jermaine Defoe who we all know could score at any given opportunity. We need to stay focused for 90 minutes”.

“We’re not going to sit back and park the bus. We want to give Rangers something to think about. There won’t be many changes to the side that played against Aberdeen”.

Jamie Walker (Player)

“The lads are gutted still, but the manager has spoken us all and we’re up for this game against Rangers”.

“Rangers have been struggling but the quality is there to see. We need to stay on our game and take our opportunities when we get them”.

“I’ve been enjoying my football so far this season, I feel that I’m in great shape and I love working with the manager. It’s a good time to be at Hearts”.

Build up

Team selection

Only one change from the game against Aberdeen, Zander Clark who recently arrived from St Johnstone replaces Joel Pereira between the sticks.

No further changes on the bench.

Starting XI

Clark
Smith
Souttar
Vucur
White
Fletcher
Irving
Clare
Wallace
Walker
Ikpeazu

Subs

Pereira
Halkett
Hickey
Damour
Meshino
Naismith
Washington

First half

Rangers kick off today’s match at Ibrox and were immediately on the front foot. On loan Liverpool winger Sheyi Ojo burst past Hearts full back Michael Smith and headed for goal. He cut the ball back to the edge of the box where Joe Aribo fired the ball over the bar.

Rangers continued to push forward. Rangers captain James Tavernier delivered a wonderful cross from the right, the cross found its way to the back post where Sheyi Ojo volleyed it towards goal. Debutant Zander Clark could only parry the ball into the side netting. Great start for Rangers.

Rangers 1 Hearts 0.

Hearts then stepped up a level and started to ask questions of the Rangers defences. A cross from Aidan White found the head of Uche Ikpeazu, however his header was easily saved by Allan McGregor.

Another cross, this time from Michael Smith, again found the Hearts forward. This time his header beat Allan McGregor, only for it to bounce back off the crossbar. Rangers centre back Conor Goldson cleared the ball into the stands.

Hearts threatened again just before the break. A splitting pass from Darren Fletcher founds it was in behind the Rangers defence. Jamie Walker beat James Tavernier to the ball and he cross found the late run of Sean Clare who volleyed the ball goal wards. Allan McGregor was beaten once more, but luck was on his side, as the ball struck the post and went out for a goal kick.

The referee blew his whistle to mark the end of the first half.

Half time; Rangers 1 Hearts 0.

Second half

Hearts kicked off the second half and pumped the ball forward for Uche Ikpeazu, Filip Helander challenged the Hearts forward and caught him a wandering elbow. The referee awarded a free kick to Hearts and showed the Swedish international a yellow card.

It was Rangers turn to pump the ball forward. Ryan Jack played a superb ball over the top of Hearts full back Aidan White, who was in no man’s land. Stipe Vucur rushed across to cover his team mate, however could not deal with the pace of Jordan Jones. He tugged on the shirt of the Northern Ireland international and pulled him to the ground. The referee awarded a free kick to Rangers and cautioned the Hearts centre back.

In almost similar fashion, Ryan Jack played an identical back to Jordan Jones. Vucur again chased Jones but was hesitant in making any contact. Jones skipped past the Austrian and took a shot, his shot cannoned off John Souttar but fell back into his path where he simply placed the ball past Zander Clark.

Rangers 2 Hearts 0.

Hearts were now chasing the game and decided to bring on Steven Naismith. Naismith was booed by the homes fans but this did not put him off. Within 5 minutes of coming on, Jamie Walker found the feet of Naismith who shifted the ball onto his right foot and struck the ball goal wards. Allan McGregor at full stretch managed to tip the ball out for a corner.

The corner was delivered by Jamie Walker and fouind the head of Uche Ikpeazu, who was being wrestled by Rangers centre back Filip Helander. Ikpeazu managed to win the header but the ball sailed well over the goal.

Hearts continued to commit men forward but could not find a break through. One attack broke down and Jordan Jones raced forward. Hearts midfielder Sean Clare tracked him but could not deal with the wingers pace. He took one for the team a tripped Jones and received a yellow card for his actions.

Three minutes into stoppage time, Hearts pushed for a consolation, however Allan McGregor caught an awful cross and immediately found Jermaine Defoe. Defoe dribbled the ball towards the 18 yard box where he had the option to square it to Sheyi Ojo. Defoe decided to take it himself and placed the ball into the corner of Zander Clarks goal, a sublime finish too.

Rangers 3 Hearts 0.

Hearts kicked off and hoofed the ball forward, however the referee blew his whistle to signal the end of the game.

Full time; Rangers 3 Hearts 0.

Man of the match

Sheyi Ojo was awarded man of the match, however it could have been any of the Rangers players. Ojo terrified full back Aidan White, who has not been having the best of times of late. The on loan Liverpool winger also managed to grab his first goal for Rangers.

Needs to improve

Take your pick, Aidan White was awful but the vote goes to Uche Ikpeazu with a 6.2 rating. He had chances to get Hearts back in the game but was not clinical enough. His early pre-season form has fizzled away.