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Hearts Try To Play A Good Game Against Celtic, But Only Talk A Good One Against Ibrox.

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Lawrence Shankland says that his team has to up its game if it is to get results against Celtic and the team across the city. Frankly, if they did as much talking on the pitch as they do off it they would have nothing to worry about.

And here’s another suggestion; they might stand a better chance of getting somewhere if they actually showed up for business whenever their opponents are the club across the city. Don’t tell me that Neilson has the same commitment to beating them as he does us, because I’ve watched their games against both sides and he absolutely does not.

When it comes to Celtic games, every one is played like a cup final.

Against Celtic, they show up for business. We can be in no doubt about that. They try against us. Neilson puts his heart and soul into trying to get results. They’ve ran us close a few times. They were the first team to beat Ange Postecoglou in Scotland.

But when they come up against the Ibrox club something strange seems to come over them. They do a lot of mouthing in the media, but then Neilson does weird things with the team selection. Twice now in recent years he’s done this, changing the formation, playing his footballers in weird positions, almost as if it’s an act of self-sabotage.

Surely not though? So what exactly is it that comes over him?

Because BBC Radio Scotland’s commentary team were honestly baffled before the game in midweek when they heard the line-up and saw the formation. They could not fathom what it was that he was trying to do. In the aftermath Neil McCann described as a “failed experiment.” That’s one to put it I suppose, but why pick that game to try it?

It seems clear that Hearts were absolutely all over the place from the first minute of the match, and he stood and allowed that to continue. The Mooch’s side has struggled against almost every opponent it has played since he took over … yet they rolled over Hearts with ease, and with the same personnel who have huffed and puffed for weeks.

If I were a suspicious minded man I’d say it was suspect.

And it was weird to see Shankland in the press today talking as if it was just a bump in the road instead of a major reversal. It is bad enough that certain managers seem to lack bottle when they face off against The Mooch and his team … but Hearts barely turn up at all.

That’s the first thing they need to get right if they’re to “improve.”

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23 comments

  • John Copeland says:

    Up until Wednesday night ,I always thought that the biggest fraud in the Scottish game was McInnes at the bigot backing club Kilmarnock ! Now there is a new Great Pretender on the throne … Neilson at Hearts ! Every single time his lot play the Rangers ,his bottle crashes ,he changes a winning formation ,he plays in form players out of position and never plays his strongest starting eleven ! If that game at Tynecastle was an experiment ,Robbie Nielson was the test tube .

  • Allan Loveman says:

    Allan Loveman

  • Kevan McKeown says:

    Havenae a clue why he shifted his side about in that game. Disnae make sense. Martindale wi Livingston, culpable of the same shit 2 seasons ago. Playin Celtic at their ground, or at CP, put up a brick wall wi 10 men defendin (still does). At ibrox and at home against them, set his team out tae attack and were beaten convincingly. Naebody even tried tae give an explination. Another problem here ( a more blatant one), is there’s too many ibrox minded ‘hearts’ players, who’ll no show any type of real commitment when it comes tae playin them.

  • Geoff says:

    Neilson should have been sacked after the cup final.
    120mins against a team who had played the same plus a penalty shoot out in draining temperatures and Hearts never had a shot on target.
    That was the day to have a go.

  • Bennybhoy57 says:

    Always said its sevcos easiest games of the season..hearts play like thugs against us, stand aside and play like starstruck wee boys when the big huns are in town.

  • Johnny Green says:

    The Diets are a disgrace, and the only good thing about them is that they constantly let down their vile fans, they deserve each other.

  • William Melvin says:

    I said after the weekend games on twitter that Neilson would set his team up to fail and he didn’t make me out to be a liar.
    I guess the Hearts fans must be okay with this fraud in charge of team selection and tactics as there seems to be no questions asked of him after games against the huns.
    Even in a Scottish Cup Final last season which went on for over two hours and after Sevco had played extra time and gone to penalties on the Thursday night they didn’t lay a glove on them.
    So much for professional pride and honour !
    It doesn’t matter to us anyway what these cheats get up to.
    We’ll just keep winning and they can keep trying to keep up with Ange and the Bhoys.
    Fuck the SFA ?

  • harold shand says:

    A club with ex huns in their coaching staff , ex huns in their team ( one of them who’s never off the radio gushing about his old club ) ‘ Celebrity ‘ fans who hop online straight after getting destroyed 3-0 at home to chug about how brilliant the huns were

    Total tin pot club

  • Peterbrady says:

    How many times tomorrow will goldson handle the ball how many times will sakala and banjo kid through themselves to ground to cheat what time will tavpen score it’s all fixed and no doubt the heilanders will just except it souptaker bigot mckay will have his heid up the mooch arse after the farce

  • QuadBhoy says:

    “They were the first team to beat Ange Postecoglou in Scotland.”

    Aye, thanks to a legit Celtic goal being ruled offside.

    Often when they have run us close it’s been due to refs also – Smith handball not given, freedom to foul us more than Rangers.

    SPFL players know they can get away with more against Celtic players than Rangers – psychologically that handicaps them going in to these games compared to ours though I agree Neilson also did his best to mess up his chances here.

    QB

  • Peterbrady says:

    How many times will goldson handle tomorrow how many times will sakala and banjo kid through themselves to the ground to cheat when Will tavpen score it’s all fixed and the heilanders will just except it and after the farce souptaker bigot mckay will have his heid up the mooch arse.

  • Charlie Kelly says:

    Yes Hearts never do I expect them to beat the Huns.they are Sevco wee cousins two horrible sets of fans,and management at hearts and Kilmarnock roll over everytime

  • En Aitch says:

    Liedown Neilson(hun) will never trouble cheatco. Scottish Cup final of 120 mins and not a single shot on goal.
    So many others not bothered either.

  • Duncan says:

    Insider news today coming from Beales office ( a mole in the camp?) suggesting Allan McGregor was left raging as Connor Goldson apparently picked up two clean sheet bonuses in the past fortnight along with his two win bonuses.
    He left training early this morning after Castore had sent Connor Goldson two replacement training bibs with the GK on them.

  • Joe Monaghan says:

    Told the Bhoys at work he would come out with a new formation or something along that line he does it constantly against them not just occasionally all the time.

  • S Thomas says:

    Hearts got beat by a better side, and a better manager, it’s really that simple. A mean what are we saying here, that Hearts wanted to lose the match lol. That’s taking paranoia to the extremes. If you think that’s the case, they should be done for match fixing. Sometimes a read some of the comments on this, and all I can do as laugh. When we hammer a side, it’s due to our roy of the rivers players, and the complete tactical genius of our manager, but when they win, it’s because we are essentially accusing there manager, of cheating. Come on lads, let’s get a grip here.

    • Hans says:

      Jeez…..a voice of reason? It’ll never catch on. We will shortly complete a winning run of eleven titles in twelve years. We’re probably odds on to win the treble. Again. Why don’t we focus on ourselves? We are a joy to watch at the minute. Neilson’s line-up suspect? A professional club wanted to roll over to that lot? Really? Neilson tried to be bold and got cuffed. It happens. Why don’t we enjoy the period of dominance we’re enjoying? Instead of looking under every rock for a conspiracy?

    • Johnny Green says:

      Spoken like a true hun Sean……and your poor schooling is showing up in your grammar once again.

      • S Thomas says:

        They will put the word hun on your gravestone, as that’s your war cry. Hun, because we all don’t agree with you pish, that you talk. Hearts got smashed off because they were the inferior team, it’s as simple as that. They have an inferior manager, and inferior players. Everything’s not a bloody conspiracy all the time. Poor schooling lol, how do you know what I do for a living, numpty. The fact of the matter is, this is the same 11 players that van bronckhorst had at his disposal, and Beale has completely made them play better, and got a reaction off them, if you can’t see that, you will be in for a surprise. Everybody’s a hun with you, when people give you facts. You and James talk garbage, everybody on here knows it. Like I said Hearts got smashed, because they are pish, and got beat, by a more up for it side. It’s not rocket science, clown face. Ps I’ve not heard from you from a while, has your throat been that sore, since you were singing that Davie Cooper song, with the goon brigade, sorry I do beg your pardon, the green brigade.

  • Seppington says:

    Dobbie Neilson is showing his prospective employers he can do whatever they need.

    WHATEVER they need. Including being the goat’s stand-in at the Ayebrokes ludge…

  • Eldraco says:

    It is not “weired” if one is inclined to look up messer’s Webster one would see very clearly that weired does not describe what the hearts manager did with his team selections against the *Rangers. Corruption however, well that’s a matter different in its entirety altogether.

  • Ed says:

    Isn’t the first time the Jambos “experimented” agains them.
    I remember a few years ago, under Levein. Hearts was on a 6 game win streak in a 4-4-2 formation. Then vs the Ibrokes club at Tynecastle, they changed the whole formation in something like a 3-4-3. Got absolute battered by them, and the next game it was again 4-4-2.

  • Michael McCartney says:

    Robbie Neilson is the most overrated manager in the SPFL. The media in Scotland laud him as if he is doing a great job. To be in 3rd place 19 points behind the 2nd placed team should be embarrassing for Hearts with the pool of players available. Two games against Rangers at Tynecastle this season and they’re shafted 4-0 in October and 3-0 going on 6 the other night against a very ordinary Rangers team. As I say embarrassing but their fans seem to accept being a poor third and having a tactically hopeless manager.

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