Half-term report card, Hearts: Stendel needs men who are fit for purpose

Where to begin? Hearts have had a ghastly few months.

In fact, 2019 couldn’t end quickly enough for the troubled Gorgie side.

Last January, then still under the charge of Craig Levein, they were a very respectable fifth in the table.

To be fair, even that position represented a slip in standards.

In November, 2018, they briefly led the Premiership.

Compared to what was to come, however, it was an excellent place to be.

In the 12 months that followed, they were to win just half-a-dozen games, comfortably the worst return of any of the country’s top-flight teams.

When Hearts return to action against Ross County at the Global Energy Stadium in Dingwall on January 22, they will do as the bottom-placed team – five points behind Hamilton Accies, and six behind St Mirren.

From their 21 league games this term, they have managed just two wins.

© Roddy Scott / SNS Group

One was against the Paisley Saints, and the other a somewhat fortuitous derby success over Hibs at Easter Road in September, Aaron Hickey’s late winner finding its way into the net with the help of a deflection.

It bought Levein a little time, but only a few weeks .

At the end of October, he was sacked as manager, yet remaining at the club to see out his deal, working “to develop and improve the structure of the backroom and youth operations”.

In addition, after five weeks of wrangling, they got their No. 1 choice to be his replacement, former Barnsley manager Daniel Stendel.

After four straight defeats, the German oversaw a gutsy draw against Aberdeen just before the break.

STAR MAN

Aaron Hickey was Hearts hero in the derby win, and he has generally managed the trick of looking like a good player trapped in a bad team this season.

Tenacious and direct, he is very much a presence at left-back.

Given he is still just 17 years old, and his experience amounts to just 20 top-team appearances, that is impressive.

New manager Stendel has already made a point of praising him for his skill and positive attitude on the pitch, so it would appear his future is bright.

Indeed, the only blot on his longer-term horizon would be Scotland’s notorious embarrassment of riches in his position, with Andy Robertson, Kieran Tierney, Greg Taylor and Barry Douglas all blocking the way to a call up.

Time, though, is clearly, is on his side.

PROSPECTS

When Stendel did his due diligence on Hearts, he must have reached the conclusion that it would be hard to do much worse.

With results so poor, it was obvious to anyone that what was required was not so much a tweak here and there, as a complete overhaul.

The evidence of that was quickly clear with the news that 35-year-old central midfielder Glenn Whelan would not be part of his plans.

A man who won 91 caps for the Republic of Ireland and played at the highest level for Stoke City and Aston Villa, he had the pedigree, but was not what the new manager was looking for.

Stendel’s success in leading Barnsley to promotion from England’s League One to the Championship had been based on a high-energy, pressing game.

Since taking over at Hearts, he has wasted no time in imposing his new style on the squad.

Some, such as Hickey and Michael Smith, look like being suited to the new approach.

In other cases, Stendel will need to try to bring in players who are fit for purpose.

That’s likely to mean new faces during this window, and more youth promoted into the team, with the possibility existing of Harry Cochrane and Anthony McDonald having their loans at Dunfermline cut short.

On a more general point, it would surely also make sense for the club to part company with Craig Levein now, rather than at the end of his deal in the summer.