NO ESCAPING TYNECASTLE NIGHTMARE
‘I didn’t expect this in my wildest dreams,’ admits Ikpeazu. ‘It’s bad at the bottom. It’s horrible’
HE cErtainly doesn’t look like someone who has ended up on the losing side of many battles; few outside the ranks of professional light-heavyweights would probably even be tempted to have a go.
if brute force and unstoppable personal drive count for anything in the fight against relegation, then, Hearts can feel pretty fortunate to have Uche ikpeazu among their ranks.
Hardly everyone’s idea of what a modern footballer should be, the target man can never be accused of shirking a shift or ducking a challenge.
Facing up to the ‘horrible’ reality of sitting bottom of the Scottish Premiership, a status that should surely shock the entire squad into a reaction in today’s Edinburgh Derby at tynecastle, the big Englishman can only draw on his inner strength. and hope to learn from past experiences.
ikpeazu’s reluctance to draw a direct comparison between his current plight and a successful avoidance of relegation to England’s league two with crewe alexandra is down to one obvious difference between the clubs; he wouldn’t insult Hearts by likening them to a side of negligible import beyond their own back yard.
But the key lesson from season 2013-14, that one result can turn around an entire campaign, sticks with him to this day.
‘i’ve been in a relegation battle before, when i went on loan to crewe for the first time,’ said the 24-year-old. ‘We stayed in the league, so that’s an experience i have in my locker.
‘But, no disrespect to crewe, Hearts are a massive club in Scotland and, with the players we have, we should never be in this position. We are bottom of the league and that’s the situation. i didn’t expect this in my wildest dreams. it’s bad.
‘Hearts are my team and have become a big part of my life since coming to Edinburgh, so seeing the club in this position is horrible.
‘i hate losing games, let alone being bottom of the table. How do we get out of it? i think sometimes there’s just that monkey on your back — when you are losing games, you keep losing games. it’s a bit like being a striker and not scoring, it then gets harder to score goals.
‘i just feel like one win could lift us and things can start going for us. Hard work, determination and remaining positive is the only way you can get through this.
‘We just need something to go for us. that can be when the penny finally drops.’
recalling that character-forming loan spell at Gresty road, ikpeazu admits to being a little hazy on the details. But he does remember one key point, saying: ‘We were on losing streak and we won a game. and we picked up and we ended up staying up because we picked up quite a few wins in a short space of time. that momentum pushes you through.
‘i hope that the same applies to Hearts. We are in December now, so there are still many games to get out of this position — and i believe we can.
‘the derby is a massive game in Scotland due to the rivalry and history between Hibs and Hearts.
‘But it is huge for us because we are bottom of the league and need to pick up some points.
‘that’s the most important thing. regardless of the opposition, we need to win.
‘Hopefully we get a lift from the occasion — but the situation we are in needs to lift us.’
in a season of few highlights, a campaign bad enough to cost craig levein his job as head coach, victory over Hibs in September stands out as a rare enjoyable occasion for the Gorgie outfit.
ikpeazu scored the equaliser that day, cancelling out Stevie Mallan’s opener before aaron Hickey netted a late winner.
as much as he enjoyed the day, the fact that it didn’t provide the springboard to a leap up the table rendered victory less meaningful, in retrospect.
‘that’s in the past — it seems a while ago now,’ he said. ‘We thought that was a turning point. i don’t know what’s happened.
‘What i do know is that i’m doing everything that i can. and i’m sure my team-mates are too — off the pitch and working hard on the pitch to help us get out of this situation. a club of this stature shouldn’t be in the position it is. it’s very frustrating.’
taking on a Hibs team sitting ten points clear of their old rivals, Hearts are still a group of individual players trying to adjust to a new manager’s style.
With Daniel Stendel missing from the build-up to this one, having travelled back to Germany for personal reasons, can home fans really expect their team to be up to speed?
‘any manager coming in, it was always going to be difficult,’ conceded ikpeazu.
‘you are coming in to a team who haven’t won many games and are not high in confidence.
‘you cannot just blame the manager. He has just come to the club. Of course, we need to get some wins on the board but we know what the manager is trying to instil in the team.
‘i think for now we just need to focus on ourselves. Obviously, Hibs are ten points ahead of us. that’s good for them.
‘When we focus on ourselves and start winning games, the rest will take care of itself.
‘We need to pick up as many points as possible and just instil some confidence. When you’re losing games, i don’t care what anyone says, the confidence of the team isn’t going to be high.
‘We need to get a win and when we do, that’ll lift us and we go again and hopefully get a push from the momentum. that’s the most important thing — not what’s happening around us.’