Two of Hearts /Langer and Thiam set to sign but Gordon deal looks dead
● Boss can get revenge for his first loss and climb off the bottom this weekend
Hearts are set to make at least two new signings despite a bid for Craig Gordon hitting the buffers.
Schalke midfielder Marcel Langer is expected to team up with his former Hannover youth coach, while another of Daniel Stendel’s former charges, Mamadou Thiam, with whom he worked at Barnsley, could beef up his attacking options. Both are in the final six months of their contracts and pre-contract deals had been mooted but they are expected in the capital today to have medicals and agree deals.
But Celtic’s determination to keep hold of Gordon appears to have killed off an immediate return to the Gorgie club.
“We’re looking for offensive players and Joel [Pereira] played well in the last games,” said Stendel, right. “Craig Gordon has a contract with Celtic.”
There is little doubt that his previous encounter with St Johnstone rocked Hearts boss Daniel Stendel. But things have changed since then.
That was the German’s first game at the helm in Gorgie and, just days after accepting the job, the defeat and, more significantly, the manner of the loss, ensured there would be no ambiguity regarding the difficulty of the task facing him.
Both teams were mired in the relegation slurry but the Perth side did enough that day to move off bottom spot and leapfrog the capital side, with only goal difference preventing Stendel’s new charges replacing them in the doldrums.
“That was the worst! I have lost some games in my career as a manager and as a player. The feeling after that game was that we had so much power, but we needed more plans, more ideas, more structure in our game.
“I was really disappointed about the result because that team were bottom but we deserved to lose. It was hard for me to accept it. But the feeling is that this was a long time ago and this is a different situation.”
If that game initially knocked the stuffing out of the new manager, he recovered well and, showing resilience, in the seven games since he has slowly but surely steadied the ship and although the side now sit rock bottom, they face the strong possibility of changing that tomorrow, provided they can piece together back-to-back league wins for the first time this season and manage to build on last weekend’s triumph over Rangers.
“We have stepped forward so much in the last few weeks. We have changed our mentality. We have changed our style and it’s a different game. But after the win against us, St Johnstone won more games and we know they are a good team. We also know we are a good team and we can win at St Johnstone.”
Back-to-back draws, and a victorious Scottish Cup tie laid the foundations for Hearts’ performance and three points against Steven Gerrard’s men last weekend, and the return of several key players to the fold following lengthy injury lay-offs, has helped stabilise things.
The balance in the side and the ability to play the style of football demanded by the Tynecastle gaffer has been aided further by what looks like wise recruitment in the guise of Liam Boyce, Toby Sibbick, and Donis Avdijaj with others set to follow today, while the arrival of his former coaching cohort at Barnsley, Dale Tonge, is another step in the right direction and shows strong backing from the board.
“Tongey can help us quickly. He knows what I want and his native language is English so it’s no problem communicating with the players.
He’s also a positive type. We believe in what we do, in being positive and that we can change the situation and the atmosphere. With his work and his mentality, he can help us do that. I think he can be just as important as the players we’ve signed.
“I am comfortable with what I am doing. I am convinced that my ideas about how to play the game works in Scottish football. It was a good feeling to show that against one of the biggest teams in Scotland.”
Having closed the gap on the teams above them, a win, depending on how Hamilton and St Mirren fare against Celtic and Hibs respectively, this weekend could take Hearts off the foot of the table.
“We can do it,” said Stendel. “Our goal for the end of the season is to be out of the bottom two places. This is our biggest goal at the moment. We can talk about a lot of things, but if we don’t get points, we are not changing the situation. We have a chance on Saturday. We want to take that chance.”