Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Hartley: Faissal can bounce back
DUNDEE manager Paul Hartley is confident Faissal El Bakhtaoui will get over his miss against Celtic last Saturday.
The 24-year-old striker squandered a glaring opportunity to level the scores late on at Celtic Park but Paul thinks the Frenchman has to forget about it.
“It has been a big step up for him coming up two divisions. He scored a lot of goals in League One last season but it is a different game now as he is playing against better and stronger players.
“He is still a work in progress. He was really disappointed with the chance but he just has to forget it.”
Bakhtaoui will be in the Dee squad for tomorrow night’s home game against a Hearts side which has had no shortage of coverage over the past few weeks.
The announcement of Iain Cathro as head coach raised a few eyebrows but Paul believes he should be given breathing space to prove himself.
“He needs to be given time to see how he does. That’s the only way to judge a manager.
“I think there has been a lot made about him getting the job but maybe it is because of the age he has got it.
“I think he deserves the chance to manage the club.”
The Dark Blues boss doesn’t expect Hearts’ style to change either with the introduction of Cathro.
The Jambos have been known for their passing game in recent years and the manager expects it to stay the same.
“I don’t think Hearts’ style will change too much. It looks like he is trying to build from the back and play a passing game.
“I don’t think their personnel will change too much either against us, having looked at a lot of footage of their games.”