WINTER BREAK NOT LONG ENOUGH, SAYS LEVEIN

CRAIG LEVEIN has welcomed the prospect of taking his Hearts squad to Spain next week — but believes the winter break is not nearly long enough. Unbeaten in nine matches, the Tynecastle club will head to Valencia next Thursday and face German Second Division side Nuremberg and Dutch toptier opposition in Vitesse Arnhem over the course of a five-day stay. But given his side will only have ten days’ rest between their last game on December 30 — a goalless draw at Aberdeen — and heading to sunnier climes, the Hearts manager fears there will be insufficient time to recharge their batteries. ‘It will be good for us when it comes round,’ said Levein. ‘I’m a fan of the winter break but not in this format. ‘I always felt as a player that I needed a month in the summer to unwind, but there’s not enough time. ‘We only really get a week off in January — and, okay, it is welcome. ‘But then you get a situation like we’ve had in December where we’re banging in all these fixtures and we’re getting injuries because of it. ‘Then we get a break but, for me, it’s probably not long enough to have its desired purpose. ‘I always feel a break is to get your mind clear, to the point where you feel you want to go back into training again. ‘That’s the whole idea of having a break for me, but I’m not sure what we’ve got really has the desired effect. ‘In this situation, it might actually help us because we’ve got so many injuries, but I’d rather it was a longer break.’ Nonetheless, with matches arranged against quality European opposition and the opportunity for warm weather training, Levein believes the trip will still prove beneficial for his squad overall. His team racked up a sixth successive clean sheet on Saturday for the first time in the club’s history. But the Hearts boss believes there are many more elements of the Gorgie side’s play which have to improve. ‘We’ll get a chance in Spain to do some work,’ he added. ‘We’re kind of caught in between a lot of things at the moment. ‘In terms of the way we want to play, we’re not even close yet. ‘The window will help us with that. People getting fit will help. Getting some time on the training ground in Spain will help. ‘Plus, we’ll be looking to add some new players who can help — that’s the plan, but we’ll need to wait and see what happens. ‘We’ve got two games, so everybody can get 90 minutes.’