Neil Critchley ( merged )

[lou]

10 minutes ago, Lord Beni of Gorgie said:

I honestly dont see any much difference, other than we have had a couple of better fixtures in there. 

 

Thats not a criticism, as others have said, for the first time he has a couple of weeks to work, the international players bar Craig Gordon should withdraw and work harder for their club instead.

The Hibs match aside, I think the difference has been evident in every match, even the Kilmarnock fixture.

 

I agree re international call ups but I think that would unsettle the players.

 

[Gmcjambo]

10 hours ago, Pasquale for King said:

Barrie McKay, who Fox brought on against RC and played against Minsk? I think the first training session where they were demanding more from McKay showed they knew all about him tbh.

 

Completely agree,  sussed McKay's work ethic out very quickly.  I think selecting Musa was also sending a strong message to certain other players,    which he also backed up very clearly after the game saying "He trained really well the other day and looked really sharp and he's trained himself into selection and I put a big emphasis on how we train every day".    They clearly expect more from training than the previous coaching team,   this will help improve fitness and match sharpness but seems we're no longer settling for anything but full commitment.  Like it.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 11 by Gmcjambo

[Carter]

2 hours ago, Debut 4 said:

Love how he starts shaking his head mid question when he’s being told teams set up normally to sit back and frustrate at Ibrox.  
 

Suppsoe he’s in tune with what a lot of Hearts fans have said for years about trying to take the game to Rangers and Celtic but managers and players continued to let us down by being negative.  
 

Granted it wasn’t the best Rangers team ever yesterday but it’s good to know we have a manager with a completely different mindset approaching these matches.  

Looks as though he's got an edge about him.  He'll need help to cleanse the place of the shitebag mentality that's engulfed this group though. Two senior players left out of the squad yesterday suggests he's up for the task. 

[Jim Panzee]

If NC tells us he's got the players running up and down the sand dunes at Gullane then that's the clincher for me......5 year contract please....

[MCW1976]

Critchley's post-match interview was a joy to hear (on Hearts TV).

 

We've all been wanting a manager that shakes his head at the interviewer when he's asked about sitting in (and basically giving the OF 3 points before the game is played).

 

If you get a chance, well worth a listen.

 

 

[karipidis]

36 minutes ago, Lord Beni of Gorgie said:

I honestly dont see any much difference, other than we have had a couple of better fixtures in there. 

 

Thats not a criticism, as others have said, for the first time he has a couple of weeks to work, the international players bar Craig Gordon should withdraw and work harder for their club instead.

It’s been night and day. 

[Nerja Jambo]

46 minutes ago, Ex member of the SaS said:

I was disappointed when we signed him as manager but I like what I have seen so far, if only Vargas had some composure we would have won last night. Hopefully he gets cash to sign two or more players and if we get top six I will be more than happy with him.

We're told he wants to hand over £10 million. The original thought was all transfer money, then it was thought it was to cover the cost of using Jamestown A for a few years. In the pub last night we thought of another scenario, a bit of both. The cost will be covered for the 2 years up to the time he may or may not buy a minority share in the club. The rest of the money ( the majority ) will be used to get us started in the transfer market. To upgrade our squad to the standard he/we want, we do not have the money to do that, but this money will allow that. We can but hope.  

[Lord Beni of Gorgie]

21 minutes ago, karipidis said:

It’s been night and day. 

Has it? Not in terms of effectiveness. I think people are desperate for a narrative, if you look at the Plzen games, they weren't night and day from Thursday and Sunday, the 2nd half against Kilmarnock.

 

As I said and will say again emphatically, its not a criticism, he simply hasn't had time to change us. We remain as we were at the start of the season, painfully narrow and one paced

[JimmyCant]

5 minutes ago, Nerja Jambo said:

We're told he wants to hand over £10 million. The original thought was all transfer money, then it was thought it was to cover the cost of using Jamestown A for a few years. In the pub last night we thought of another scenario, a bit of both. The cost will be covered for the 2 years up to the time he may or may not buy a minority share in the club. The rest of the money ( the majority ) will be used to get us started in the transfer market. To upgrade our squad to the standard he/we want, we do not have the money to do that, but this money will allow that. We can but hope.  

No source have ever said that Bloom is giving us £10 million. There are rules about spending ‘donated’ money on players so even if we do get SOME we’ll have to be careful and creative with it

 

This whole project starts from ground Zero, like USG did (except they got money because he bought into the club)

 

We’ll be self financing player acquisition IMO in the hope that we can turn cheap or free players into diamonds and we can start doing what USG did, leading to being able to buy and sell better players as you go along and hopefully getting the benefit of having better players around the club whilst they are here 

 

USG came from a long way further down the leagues than we are. They do seem to have hit a wall status wise but they’ve done remarkably well to get where they are and they’re now trading players in the millions of euros

 

Our aim I imagine, somewhat down the line, is to challenge the OF, yes that old holy grail but an awful lot has to go right and a lot of change has to happen and a wee input from Bloom, on its own, isn’t going to put a dent in it. We’ll have to make this work for ourselves 

[mr fox]

Seen enough to suggest he is going to be excellent here.

Going to be a very good appointment this.

[mr fox]

12 hours ago, JJ93 said:

Almost Jan which is a good thing. 

 

He has been great so far. The football we are playing is superb. We just need to score. If we took our chances, we'd have won every game under him. It's up to the players to score. With finishers bought in January, we'll do very well. 

👌 

[mr fox]

2 minutes ago, Lord Beni of Gorgie said:

Has it? Not in terms of effectiveness. I think people are desperate for a narrative, if you look at the Plzen games, they weren't night and day from Thursday and Sunday, the 2nd half against Kilmarnock.

 

As I said and will say again emphatically, it’s not a criticism, he simply hasn't had time to change us. We remain as we were at the start of the season, painfully narrow and one paced

Surely you can see the difference in our play 

It’s improving every game great appointment 

[Bull's-eye]

If you cant see the difference in play your not watching the games, its that simple.

 

 

[Lord Beni of Gorgie]

3 minutes ago, mr fox said:

Surely you can see the difference in our play 

It’s improving every game great appointment 

I'm not complaining about Critchley, no I dont see any difference, I dont see the ball going in the net, I see it going in ours, we are as effective now as we were in the same difficult fixtures Naismith had. 

 

Plzen, Celtic, Rangers, close games, no goals.

[pettigrewsstylist]

35 minutes ago, MCW1976 said:

Critchley's post-match interview was a joy to hear (on Hearts TV).

 

We've all been wanting a manager that shakes his head at the interviewer when he's asked about sitting in (and basically giving the OF 3 points before the game is played).

 

If you get a chance, well worth a listen.

 

 

His body language is what's telling. Can he get there is the question. At least we have someone who looks like they might actually try to.

[gwd1957]

14 minutes ago, Lord Beni of Gorgie said:

Has it? Not in terms of effectiveness. I think people are desperate for a narrative, if you look at the Plzen games, they weren't night and day from Thursday and Sunday, the 2nd half against Kilmarnock.

 

As I said and will say again emphatically, its not a criticism, he simply hasn't had time to change us. We remain as we were at the start of the season, painfully narrow and one paced

The transfer window is still closed !!!

[the posh bit]

7 minutes ago, Lord Beni of Gorgie said:

I'm not complaining about Critchley, no I dont see any difference, I dont see the ball going in the net, I see it going in ours, we are as effective now as we were in the same difficult fixtures Naismith had. 

 

Plzen, Celtic, Rangers, close games, no goals.

 

There are obvious improvements however the confidence amongst the group is still very fragile. We need leadership on the park. 

[Nerja Jambo]

14 minutes ago, JimmyCant said:

No source have ever said that Bloom is giving us £10 million. There are rules about spending ‘donated’ money on players so even if we do get SOME we’ll have to be careful and creative with it

 

This whole project starts from ground Zero, like USG did (except they got money because he bought into the club)

 

We’ll be self financing player acquisition IMO in the hope that we can turn cheap or free players into diamonds and we can start doing what USG did, leading to being able to buy and sell better players as you go along and hopefully getting the benefit of having better players around the club whilst they are here 

 

USG came from a long way further down the leagues than we are. They do seem to have hit a wall status wise but they’ve done remarkably well to get where they are and they’re now trading players in the millions of euros

 

Our aim I imagine, somewhat down the line, is to challenge the OF, yes that old holy grail but an awful lot has to go right and a lot of change has to happen and a wee input from Bloom, on its own, isn’t going to put a dent in it. We’ll have to make this work for ourselves 

It was widely talked about that as part of the deal between us and Bloom that he was donating £ 10 million. If that's wrong then many in the media have also got it wrong. I agree with the rest of your comment in that this is ground zero and through time we have to make it work for ourselves, but at the start we do not have the money to invest in the standard of player we require. If indeed there is no money from Bloom then the board are going to show a lot more ambition than they have up to now. No matter how you look at things we need money to start this off, because without it, we can't. 

[Pasquale for King]

1 hour ago, Gmcjambo said:

 

Completely agree,  sussed McKay's work ethic out very quickly.  I think selecting Musa was also sending a strong message to certain other players,    which he also backed up very clearly after the game saying "He trained really well the other day and looked really sharp and he's trained himself into selection and I put a big emphasis on how we train every day".    They clearly expect more from training than the previous coaching team,   this will help improve fitness and match sharpness but seems we're no longer settling for anything but full commitment.  Like it.

 

 

 

 

 

Hadn’t seen that, it’s important to do that, this guy is a proper manager.

[jamboinglasgow]

12 minutes ago, Lord Beni of Gorgie said:

I'm not complaining about Critchley, no I dont see any difference, I dont see the ball going in the net, I see it going in ours, we are as effective now as we were in the same difficult fixtures Naismith had. 

 

Plzen, Celtic, Rangers, close games, no goals.

 

Except, we have been putting the ball into the net. Before the last two games we scored 10 goals in 5 games. From that getting 3 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss. The last two games have been disappointing due to our finishing, but the biggest difference is that the we are getting the ball in these positions, something we weren't really doing under Naismith this season.

 

While Plzen and Rangers had no goals, they are very different games. Plzen we were sitting in control but did not look like we would create a good chance all evening. Rangers, we created plenty but could players could not finish. That is a big improvement.

[Ricardo Quaresma]

5 hours ago, Mr Sifter said:

Love the look on his face at 1 min 10 seconds. Pure drops at the thought that a team of his should go anywhere just to “frustrate” the opposition. A subtle wee reaction from him that suggests how he wants us to be. I like that. 

 

He looks determined to get the high level of purity needed for a Team that really can't get away with less

 

Can't knock him for that; still want the Brunskill boy instead of fox, though, or someone else that he chooses

[JimmyCant]

16 minutes ago, Nerja Jambo said:

It was widely talked about that as part of the deal between us and Bloom that he was donating £ 10 million. If that's wrong then many in the media have also got it wrong. I agree with the rest of your comment in that this is ground zero and through time we have to make it work for ourselves, but at the start we do not have the money to invest in the standard of player we require. If indeed there is no money from Bloom then the board are going to show a lot more ambition than they have up to now. No matter how you look at things we need money to start this off, because without it, we can't. 

The only thing I saw in the media was ‘in a deal worth £10 million’ Everything after that is assumption. No one knows the fine detail but the least likely scenario IMO is that he transfers £10 million into our bank account.

[MCW1976]

31 minutes ago, pettigrewsstylist said:

His body language is what's telling. Can he get there is the question. At least we have someone who looks like they might actually try to.

 

Fair point. 

 

Saying that, I must say it's as much his body language as it is his comments that have me excited (that he means what he says).

 

Words are easy after all.

 

I have a genuinely good feeling.

 

 

 

Edited November 11 by MCW1976

[Lord Beni of Gorgie]

13 minutes ago, jamboinglasgow said:

 

Except, we have been putting the ball into the net. Before the last two games we scored 10 goals in 5 games. From that getting 3 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss. The last two games have been disappointing due to our finishing, but the biggest difference is that the we are getting the ball in these positions, something we weren't really doing under Naismith this season.

 

While Plzen and Rangers had no goals, they are very different games. Plzen we were sitting in control but did not look like we would create a good chance all evening. Rangers, we created plenty but could players could not finish. That is a big improvement.

6 did come against St Mirren and St Johnstone. The St Mirren game is clearly an outlier.

 

Dundee game we lost 3-1 we created a plethora of chances. And a couple of those before we fell behind and ultimately 3 behind.

 

I defy anyone to suggest we are still not to narrow or one paced. Who actually believed we would score on Thursday or Sunday, at no point was I ever confident we would, I turn up at every game that way.

 

In fact Fox 3 game spell, is the only time I felt confident we would.

 

I am sure NC will now have 2 weeks to make some adjustments, its a pity for him there have been so many games, he has had no choice probably but to suffer for his first month with the schedule so gruelling.

[OmiyaHearts]

Have to feel for the guy. Stuck with so many passengers in a bloated squad. Seems to know what he's doing but doesn't have the players to do it.

 

I missed yesterday's game but had plenty of messages from hun mates asking if Shankland had not been trying all season or just against them.

 

Even fans of other clubs now acknowledged the captain has downed tools. A very difficult situation for the manager to deal with.

[darrenold]

2 hours ago, lou said:

That was anything but the usual Ibrox performance 

Cause we didn't score I mean.   That's certainly typical of Ibrox and hearts 

[Dazo]

2 minutes ago, darrenold said:

Cause we didn't score I mean.   That's certainly typical of Ibrox and hearts 

We should have scored though which means your usual ibrox performance comment nonsense. We looked the home team for large parts of that game. 

[Central Belt 1874]

2 hours ago, vegas-voss said:

He needs to ? I doubt he will have much to do with it very much down to the board with Blooms analytics responsibility.

 

I would imagine he will be involved in some way. There will be more than 1 or 2 players identified through the use of the analytics software. 

 

 

[Brauhauser2012]

16 hours ago, Craigieboy said:

The concern now isn’t the quality of the manager we’ve appointed. In fact, it’s quite frustrating to see such good, positive football played outfield while in front of goal we are absolutely brutal. 

This.

The damage that's been done to Hearts over years, the terrible recruitment we have had, poor formations and team selections, awful coaching. I still struggle to believe we had a trainee coach in charge and the board thought that was ok. Neil's just inherited all of that, and with Graeme Jones, will need to be given time to turn the ship around. Attitude,  fitness, work rate are good places to start. We need to stop the defensive errors in the first half of the game and find a way to convert possession into goals.

 

[Tokyo Drifter]

16 hours ago, Sasha Shulgin said:

When we take into account the shitshow he inherited, been hugely impressed by him.

 

We’re getting fitter, We look more like a Hearts side and he’s clearly identified the deadwood in the squad.

 

We’ll have plenty of bumps along the way but I’m happy with the job being done.

 

Some of the reaction to his appointment was ridiculous, embarrassing and shameful.

 

He’s doing a good job.

Out of interest, who do you think he thinks is deadwood?

[Russ1977]

4 minutes ago, Tokyo Drifter said:

Out of interest, who do you think he thinks is deadwood?

Mckay, Boyce, halkett and salazar as they’ve barely played since he arrived so I’m assuming those 4 for a start. 

[The Treasurer]

1 hour ago, Nerja Jambo said:

It was widely talked about that as part of the deal between us and Bloom that he was donating £ 10 million. If that's wrong then many in the media have also got it wrong. I agree with the rest of your comment in that this is ground zero and through time we have to make it work for ourselves, but at the start we do not have the money to invest in the standard of player we require. If indeed there is no money from Bloom then the board are going to show a lot more ambition than they have up to now. No matter how you look at things we need money to start this off, because without it, we can't. 

I think the 10 million was just a figure plucked from nowhere by the media.

As for needing funding to get things moving, I don't think that's necessarily the case.

We might need to look at free transfers or loans and hope to free up wages by moving on fringe players 

[Nerja Jambo]

1 hour ago, JimmyCant said:

The only thing I saw in the media was ‘in a deal worth £10 million’ Everything after that is assumption. No one knows the fine detail but the least likely scenario IMO is that he transfers £10 million into our bank account.

But what's the deal that's worth £10 million. We're agreed that £ 10 million has been mentioned and as such it must go towards something. The only other thing I can think of is that Brighton pay around £ 2 million per year to use the system, at least that's what someone on here said ( maybe Seagull), so if that's the case maybe that's our costs covered for the next 5 years. The sooner the club announce this officially then they can give us the full info. Until them its pure speculation.

[Australis]

3 minutes ago, Russ1977 said:

Mckay, Boyce, halkett and salazar as they’ve barely played since he arrived so I’m assuming those 4 for a start. 

The first three will be on decent wages they have done very little for recently.

 

Will free up a fair bit of cash to bring in others.

 

 

[jamboinglasgow]

6 minutes ago, Nerja Jambo said:

But what's the deal that's worth £10 million. We're agreed that £ 10 million has been mentioned and as such it must go towards something. The only other thing I can think of is that Brighton pay around £ 2 million per year to use the system, at least that's what someone on here said ( maybe Seagull), so if that's the case maybe that's our costs covered for the next 5 years. The sooner the club announce this officially then they can give us the full info. Until them its pure speculation.

 

This article from a few weeks ago which was the most up to date story we have had on it:

 

https://sportingintelligence832.substack.com/p/brighton-owner-on-cusp-of-a-deal

 

Says:

 

"Initial talks between Bloom and Foundation of Hearts - which is effectively the fan-controlled collective who are majority owners of the club - started in December last year. Neither side will confirm specifics at this stage but it is understood that Bloom is ready to invest between £8m and £10m in equity to take a stake of between 20% and 25% of the club."

 

[Japan Jambo]

2 hours ago, Gmcjambo said:

 

Completely agree,  sussed McKay's work ethic out very quickly.  I think selecting Musa was also sending a strong message to certain other players,    which he also backed up very clearly after the game saying "He trained really well the other day and looked really sharp and he's trained himself into selection and I put a big emphasis on how we train every day".    They clearly expect more from training than the previous coaching team,   this will help improve fitness and match sharpness but seems we're no longer settling for anything but full commitment.  Like it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boyce, McKay, Salazar all not named I note.

[Nerja Jambo]

7 minutes ago, jamboinglasgow said:

 

This article from a few weeks ago which was the most up to date story we have had on it:

 

https://sportingintelligence832.substack.com/p/brighton-owner-on-cusp-of-a-deal

 

Says:

 

"Initial talks between Bloom and Foundation of Hearts - which is effectively the fan-controlled collective who are majority owners of the club - started in December last year. Neither side will confirm specifics at this stage but it is understood that Bloom is ready to invest between £8m and £10m in equity to take a stake of between 20% and 25% of the club."

 

Never seen that before, thanks. I thought that any shares he may wish to buy would not happen until 2 years had passed. Maybe I'm wrong. 

[kingantti1874]

14 minutes ago, jamboinglasgow said:

 

This article from a few weeks ago which was the most up to date story we have had on it:

 

https://sportingintelligence832.substack.com/p/brighton-owner-on-cusp-of-a-deal

 

Says:

 

"Initial talks between Bloom and Foundation of Hearts - which is effectively the fan-controlled collective who are majority owners of the club - started in December last year. Neither side will confirm specifics at this stage but it is understood that Bloom is ready to invest between £8m and £10m in equity to take a stake of between 20% and 25% of the club."

 

we have ann budge stating categorically that it’s not an equity stake at the agm.   At least not initially.  

Edited November 11 by kingantti1874

[FIGJAM]

2 hours ago, Gmcjambo said:

 

Completely agree,  sussed McKay's work ethic out very quickly.  I think selecting Musa was also sending a strong message to certain other players,    which he also backed up very clearly after the game saying "He trained really well the other day and looked really sharp and he's trained himself into selection and I put a big emphasis on how we train every day".    They clearly expect more from training than the previous coaching team,   this will help improve fitness and match sharpness but seems we're no longer settling for anything but full commitment.  Like it.

 

 

 

 

 

I would still argue the introduction of Musa before Wilson was one of the strangest subs made under the new regime. Totally trust NC but still struggle with that one.

[busbyfth]

1 hour ago, OmiyaHearts said:

Have to feel for the guy. Stuck with so many passengers in a bloated squad. Seems to know what he's doing but doesn't have the players to do it.

 

I missed yesterday's game but had plenty of messages from hun mates asking if Shankland had not been trying all season or just against them.

 

Even fans of other clubs now acknowledged the captain has downed tools. A very difficult situation for the manager to deal with.

Take away his name/reputation and call him by any other name, and he's been dropped weeks ago - NO striker with 1 goal in 19 games played should retain his position, even for his own sake, as a wee break can sometimes have the reset button pressed.  

[kingantti1874]

Just now, busbyfth said:

Take away his name/reputation and call him by any other name, and he's been dropped weeks ago - NO striker with 1 goal in 19 games played should retain his position, even for his own sake, as a wee break can sometimes have the reset button pressed.  

the lack of a replacement is the big problem. 

[indianajones]

Can't wait for him to get all these wage thieves out the club and to replace them with proper grafters. 

 

 

[jamboinglasgow]

Saw some interesting tweets about Critchley from John Walker, who does a lot of analysis on twitter

 

 

 

[JimmyCant]

54 minutes ago, jamboinglasgow said:

 

This article from a few weeks ago which was the most up to date story we have had on it:

 

https://sportingintelligence832.substack.com/p/brighton-owner-on-cusp-of-a-deal

 

Says:

 

"Initial talks between Bloom and Foundation of Hearts - which is effectively the fan-controlled collective who are majority owners of the club - started in December last year. Neither side will confirm specifics at this stage but it is understood that Bloom is ready to invest between £8m and £10m in equity to take a stake of between 20% and 25% of the club."

 

That’s in the future and only if it’s approved. 2 years down the line and will have to pass a 90% vote if it’s FOH shares. He’ll have to prove his analytics before we even talk about equity seriously. The club will also need to be valued first. None of this is happening imminently

[loveofthegame]

16 hours ago, Nelly Terraces said:

That's where I really feel sorry for him, it wouldn't be so bad if we were playing badly but sitting around 6th ot 7th but 2nd bottom is leaving him with virtually no slack to work with.

 

He's clearly a very good manager, has great ideas on the game, talks well & has made a huge difference already, but is hamstrung by the lack of quality in our squad. He really needs backed during the January transfer window.

 

Agreed. We need to be in or close to the pack come then and aim to pull away thereafter. The good news is, despite our horrendous points total to this point, we're not bottom and are within 3 points of four other sides.

 

In my mind sights have to try to remain on top 6 and ideally the European places - that gap is widening though.

[Ex member of the SaS]

No matter what the rules say, if he gives us £10 million it can be used for infrastructure, but that means the money we had ear marked for that infrastructure can then be spent on players instead. It's all smoke and mirrors and those who know better than us will know how to " bend " the rules.

[Gillsland jack]

The team worked hard yesterday and everybody gave 100% for the manager, that's great to see, we are just missing that final piece of the jigsaw in the final third but jeezo what a difference watching my team playing excellent fitbaw.

[jambo_74]

6 hours ago, Lord Beni of Gorgie said:

6 did come against St Mirren and St Johnstone. The St Mirren game is clearly an outlier.

 

Dundee game we lost 3-1 we created a plethora of chances. And a couple of those before we fell behind and ultimately 3 behind.

 

I defy anyone to suggest we are still not to narrow or one paced. Who actually believed we would score on Thursday or Sunday, at no point was I ever confident we would, I turn up at every game that way.

 

In fact Fox 3 game spell, is the only time I felt confident we would.

 

I am sure NC will now have 2 weeks to make some adjustments, its a pity for him there have been so many games, he has had no choice probably but to suffer for his first month with the schedule so gruelling.

I thought three times at least we would score against Sevco.

[maroonsgotop]

7 hours ago, Gmcjambo said:

 

Completely agree,  sussed McKay's work ethic out very quickly.  I think selecting Musa was also sending a strong message to certain other players,    which he also backed up very clearly after the game saying "He trained really well the other day and looked really sharp and he's trained himself into selection and I put a big emphasis on how we train every day".    They clearly expect more from training than the previous coaching team,   this will help improve fitness and match sharpness but seems we're no longer settling for anything but full commitment.  Like it.

 

 

 

 

 

Yup, that should be a given. As often gets quoted, "Maximum effort is the minimum requirement"

[busbyfth]

4 hours ago, kingantti1874 said:

the lack of a replacement is the big problem. 

Aye - as thats now three managers (inc caretaker) who havent fancied Musa to start a match , you wonder why/who signed him 

Edited November 11 by busbyfth