An angry Berra

[innerjambo]

9 hours ago, kila said:

https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/sport/football/hearts/ashamed-hearts-captain-christophe-berra-tells-players-to-stand-up-like-men-1-4844717

 

Ashamed Hearts captain Christophe Berra tells players to stand up like men

 

 

 

Hearts captain Christophe Berra admitted feeling ashamed at Friday’s 5-0 defeat by Livingston. Playing his 200th competitive game for the Edinburgh club, the 33-year-old said he wanted to forget the match but implored his colleagues to stand up and react like men.

Five goals inside a shambolic 14-minute spell near the end of the match left Hearts on the end of a trouncing in West Lothian. They had Arnaud Djoum sent off moments after falling 1-0 behind to a Craig Halkett penalty.

Dolly Menga’s solo goal, two strikes from Ryan Hardie and a late Shaun Byrne effort completed Livingston’s biggest ever victory against Hearts. Berra said he was beyond angry at full-time and admitted he and his team-mates should hang their heads in shame.

“It’s embarrassing. It’s just not good enough for Hearts and everyone should be embarrassed. It’s not what I wanted on my 200th appearance and it’s not one I’ll want to remember, I’ll try and forget it very quickly. Getting beaten in any game is hard to take but there are ways to lose.

“Most players were naive. It was schoolboy stuff not seeing a game out. We played into their hands after the penalty. Now we have to take it on the chin. It’s a great win in Livi’s history and it will go down in our history for the wrong reasons.

“We have to stand up and be counted and come back stronger. We have to take the criticism which we will rightly receive and get on with it. We have to be men. We had a good start to the season and then a dip but a couple of good results in the last few weeks and then this, which was underwhelming.

“Everything they hit seemed to go in during the second half. I’m ashamed of Friday. It brought us back down to earth. Last week against Motherwell we ground it out and showed a good team spirit to dig in and Friday was the opposite.”

Berra felt Djoum was harshly dismissed for a second booking for a foul on Menga but conceded that was not an acceptable excuse for Hearts. The opening goal came via a justified penalty award when the visiting goalkeeper Zdenek Zlamal wiped Halkett out inside the area.

“The first goal was a penalty – no doubt,” said Berra. “The sending off was soft when I see it again. He’s actually got the ball. Arnaud has maybe fallen on his private parts – that’s what he was holding, not his ankle.

“The red card is no excuse. We lost rubbish goals, we lost a couple playing into midfield where they are strong and they are all over you like a rash. We started the second half better and they weren’t causing problems. Then they get the penalty and everything fell for them. We were chasing the ball when we shouldn’t have.

“At 1-0 we should have stayed tight and tried to nick a goal at a place where it’s notoriously hard to get a result. Losing the ball in the middle of the goal when we were wide open was poor. There was a counter-attack from a free-kick and then a long ball.

“We knew how difficult this game would be. We gifted them their chances. I don’t think Arnaud deserved a first booking or the sending off but that’s not an excuse.

“We should hang our heads in shame and then try to bounce back. If we go to Pittodrie and win on Saturday then it could be a different outlook. We need to buck up our ideas.”

Berra is confident Hearts have the required character in their dressing room to recover. Defeat in West Lothian coupled with other results over the weekend leaves them sitting fifth in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

“When I came in I was past angry. Sometimes results go beyond that. There will be harsh words said by the press and the fans and rightly so. We need to buck up our ideas with three massive games to come before the break.

“Livingston have had a great season but the way we started the season we should be better than this. You have to earn the right to win games and we didn’t do that. Livingston deserve credit for a great win even if we under-performed.

“We’ve got some strong characters, even if we didn’t show that against Livi. We know what we are capable of. We defended for our lives against Motherwell and put bodies on the line, but Friday was open and individuals were playing within themselves.

“We chased the ball when we didn’t need to, especially after we went to ten men. It’s a night I’ll probably never forget but we have to move on.”

 

Blah blah blah blah, it's a pity the players and management team can't grow a set. Here's a bit of advice to you and the other superstars in the team Christophe....stop giving nice wee stories to the press and start doing your talking on the pitch....rant over.

[alwaysthereinspirit]

6 hours ago, rudi must stay said:

he was poor as well so he doesn't escape criticism either. We were open yes, but how is open a bad thing? I'd rather we were open than 'defended for our lives' at 1-0 v Motherwell.

I'll take a 1-0 shitty performance win with 3 points every time over Friday's result.

[indianajones]

Broken ****ing record.

 

Do something about it. Actions are stronger than words. 

[rudi must stay]

38 minutes ago, alwaysthereinspirit said:

I'll take a 1-0 shitty performance win with 3 points every time over Friday's result.

 

Not me. I would rather play with an exciting cavalier style. With a team always wanting to score more goals

[Rudy T]

All this actions over words should remember Berra is just back, he’s rightly raging about that performance. Had that happened without him in the team do you think any of the rest of them would’ve said it? He cares and when we get the other captains back there’s no way those who are slacking will be getting away with it! 

[luckydug]

14 minutes ago, rudi must stay said:

 

Not me. I would rather play with an exciting cavalier style. With a team always wanting to score more goals

On Friday we had neither.

Hopeless in defence, midfield and attack.

The very worst of everything.

I dread to think of the fans reaction if the players give a similar performance and attitude in the next three games.

Especially the Derby.

 

[Debut 4]

People being harsh on Berra. I think he's earned the right to have a pop. He's a proven, tough player who turns up in big games.  

 

Good players get let down by others around them and that was the case for him.

 

Rightly, some fans will say he's part of the team and deserves criticism too but he's an experienced, senior member of the squad and can clearly see what is wrong.

 

The last player to let you down would be Christophe Berra.

[Renault]

1 hour ago, indianajones said:

Broken ****ing record.

 

Do something about it. Actions are stronger than words. 

Leap before you look

[Pans Jambo]

8 hours ago, Barack said:

 

[Taffin]

He's club captain and should shoulder some of the blame for lack of application from his team mates.

 

He's a terrific pro though and I'm sure he knows that even if he missed an opportunity to state it.

[1971fozzy]

He’s just back and some having a pop ? Jesus. He’s captain and has told the press how angry and pissed off he is - good. Would folk rather he said nothing.

with some folk he can’t win.  

[Harry Potter]

4 minutes ago, 1971fozzy said:

He’s just back and some having a pop ? Jesus. He’s captain and has told the press how angry and pissed off he is - good. Would folk rather he said nothing.

with some folk he can’t win.  

Just takes some fans a bit longer to get over that farce last friday , lets not forget that was a very bad result.

But i understand what you are saying.

A 120% effort against Aberdeen from the team will be a start.

[Alex Kintner]

25 minutes ago, 1971fozzy said:

He’s just back and some having a pop ? Jesus. He’s captain and has told the press how angry and pissed off he is - good. Would folk rather he said nothing.

with some folk he can’t win.  

 

[gashauskis9]

Hope he’s still angry come Sat.  I’m still ****ing raging tbh, I haven’t reacted to a defeat like this for years.  

[Craig Herbertson]

56 minutes ago, 1971fozzy said:

He’s just back and some having a pop ? Jesus. He’s captain and has told the press how angry and pissed off he is - good. Would folk rather he said nothing.

with some folk he can’t win.  

Spot on.

Berra's not helped by a poor repetitive article that looks like it's dictated directly onto the page. A decent journalist takes a few quotes and highlights the main argument.

 

[Thomaso]

23 hours ago, dazajmbo said:

Berra went mental at full time. 2 players stood up and tried to bite back at which point he told them both to get out of the dressing room and to buck thier ideas up.

 

I've worded that alot nicer than I imagine it to have gone. 

 

He was and still is raging. Levien didn't talk to any of the players until the bus got back and I believe he gave every single one of them a real dressing down as they got off the bus single file. 

 

I'd expect us to beat Aberdeen after whats gone on this week. 

 

[NANOJAMBO]

15 hours ago, luckydug said:

On Friday we had neither.

Hopeless in defence, midfield and attack.

The very worst of everything.

I dread to think of the fans reaction if the players give a similar performance and attitude in the next three games.

Especially the Derby.

 

In a nut shell. It's a poor , poor team and there's no disguising it now. Players who lack the basic skills  to play football  and some who just don't seem to have what it takes , mentality wise.  Couldn't give a crap about CL dressing down the players or whatever he did....he needs to fix his football team. 

[Pasquale for King]

Maybe they should’ve let some fans talk to the players after the game to show how unacceptable that performance was. They should realise there are three crucial games coming up, for the club and their future.