OFFICIAL HEARTS JUGGERNAUT THREAD 2020-

[Darren]

11 minutes ago, VincentGuerin said:

I think we played our strongest side last night because injuries forced us to. Without taking the absolute piss, I don't see much Neilson could have changed.

I'm not really sure what your point is here. Nobody is saying it's not a poor result. Just that sometimes poor results have context.

I don't think it would have happened if we'd not been missing any three of the seven players we were missing. So, on that basis, I'm not going to get too upset about it.

Would you expect Aberdeen, Hibs, or Motherwell to beat a Premiership side at home with seven players missing?

My point is I fundamentally disagree with your argument that it's a "blessing in disguise".

I've already said I expected us to lose. It's still a disappointment to do so. Particularly in one of the two competitions we have a semi-realistic chance of winning.

[VincentGuerin]

3 minutes ago, Darren said:

My point is I fundamentally disagree with your argument that it's a "blessing in disguise".

I've already said I expected us to lose. It's still a disappointment to do so. Particularly in one of the two competitions we have a semi-realistic chance of winning.

Fair enough. We'll need to agree to disagree.

 

[topcat(The most tip top)]

Stephen Humphrys deal agreed between Hearts and Wigan Athletic
Hearts have agreed a loan deal for Wigan Athletic striker Stephen Humphrys and should complete his signing this evening. (EEN REPORT)
 

whether he’s any good is another question but the fact that he’s been vying with Josh Magennis for starts at at Wigan suggests that he’s probably useful at this level but not the answer to all our prayers 

Edited September 1, 2022 by topcat(The most tip top)

[DC92]

1 hour ago, topcat(The most tip top) said:

Stephen Humphrys deal agreed between Hearts and Wigan Athletic
Hearts have agreed a loan deal for Wigan Athletic striker Stephen Humphrys and should complete his signing this evening. (EEN REPORT)
 

whether he’s any good is another question but the fact that he’s been vying with Josh Magennis for starts at at Wigan suggests that he’s probably useful at this level but not the answer to all our prayers 

Wigan fans are mildly positive towards him but he just looks thoroughly mediocre. 

Brian McLaughlin reporting that we're done for tonight. Hopefully we've got some free agents we can pick up tomorrow because I think we're desperately short of depth and quality in the forward areas.

[RandomGuy.]

2 hours ago, topcat(The most tip top) said:

whether he’s any good is another question but the fact that he’s been vying with Josh Magennis for starts at at Wigan suggests that he’s probably useful at this level but not the answer to all our prayers 

Funny Magennis came to mind when looking at this  Lots of running/hard work, little use keeping possession, and very wasteful in front of goal.

[DC92]

7 minutes ago, RandomGuy. said:

Funny Magennis came to mind when looking at this  Lots of running/hard work, little use keeping possession, and very wasteful in front of goal.

Looks absolutely class.

Do you have Kiomourtzoglou?

[RandomGuy.]

Just now, DC92 said:

Looks absolutely class.

Do you have Kiomourtzoglou?

[Crùbag]

23 minutes ago, DC92 said:

Looks absolutely class.

Do you have Kiomourtzoglou?

Don't know who has him. Been swallowed up by Brexit visa chaos. Will be here for the New Year Derby hopefully.

[the jambo-rocker]

All things considered the starting 11 arguably looks stronger now than now last season. Souttar and Simms are the only arguments that can be had against Rowles and Shankland, but fortunately the gap isn't too big. I'd say we've levelled up but the problem is still the squad.

I thought we were looking quite light towards the end of last season, it certainly showed in the cup final as we tired a lot towards the end. The squad has only increased by a net of 2, one of you include Boyce out for all season. You could argue Smith, Pollock and Henderson are going to be more involved but they aren't proven quality yet.

We still seriously need a couple bodies in and hopefully we get them, but if it's not done by today I believe it's too late for them to go into the European games? 

Certainly a worrying concern IMO. I think as long as we're still in and about 3rd domestically come the WC break we'll be doing well. 

[VincentGuerin]

4 minutes ago, the jambo-rocker said:

All things considered the starting 11 arguably looks stronger now than now last season. Souttar and Simms are the only arguments that can be had against Rowles and Shankland, but fortunately the gap isn't too big. I'd say we've levelled up but the problem is still the squad.

I thought we were looking quite light towards the end of last season, it certainly showed in the cup final as we tired a lot towards the end. The squad has only increased by a net of 2, one of you include Boyce out for all season. You could argue Smith, Pollock and Henderson are going to be more involved but they aren't proven quality yet.

We still seriously need a couple bodies in and hopefully we get them, but if it's not done by today I believe it's too late for them to go into the European games? 

Certainly a worrying concern IMO. I think as long as we're still in and about 3rd domestically come the WC break we'll be doing well. 

With everyone fit and available we've got a really good team. Halkett, Kingsley, Baningime, Boyce, Grant, Rowles, and Atkinson added to what played the other night is a side that's a shoo-in to finish third, imo. As it stands, we're vulnerable.

It's worrying how often we're picking up injuries though, and I think it's time to consider there might be a problem at the club. It cost us dearly in terms of the cup final, as we went into the game with half a team not fit, and now we're going into the rewards of last season looking similarly fragile in terms of fitness. We've picked up these injuries before the fixtures have really piled up. Are we unlucky or is there something we're doing wrong?

I think a lot of Hearts supporters underestimated how tough this season was going to be (certainly a lot I know) and we're starting to see the reality of it. I agree with you, keep in touch with third by the World Cup break and we should be fine. But a really difficult couple of months coming up.

[Insert Amusing Pseudonym]

12 minutes ago, VincentGuerin said:

With everyone fit and available we've got a really good team. Halkett, Kingsley, Baningime, Boyce, Grant, Rowles, and Atkinson added to what played the other night is a side that's a shoo-in to finish third, imo. As it stands, we're vulnerable.

It's worrying how often we're picking up injuries though, and I think it's time to consider there might be a problem at the club. It cost us dearly in terms of the cup final, as we went into the game with half a team not fit, and now we're going into the rewards of last season looking similarly fragile in terms of fitness. We've picked up these injuries before the fixtures have really piled up. Are we unlucky or is there something we're doing wrong?

I think a lot of Hearts supporters underestimated how tough this season was going to be (certainly a lot I know) and we're starting to see the reality of it. I agree with you, keep in touch with third by the World Cup break and we should be fine. But a really difficult couple of months coming up.

On the injuries, i genuinely think it's just been bad luck in the main.  Going back to last season and that freak game at Tannadice then the game on Sunday, they're almost all impact injuries or rank bad luck.  Broken bones, knee injuries, bad landings.  

If you're getting lots of muscle injuries it's usually a sign of an underlying problem but i don't think it's the case with us, at the moment anyway.   This season with such a lot of games might make it worse though

[the jambo-rocker]

We've only played 8 games this season and we already have 7 players out, including our whole back line at one point. It's certainly worrisome.

I still think we're lacking two things.

The first is obviously pace, as sometimes we're far too laborious progressing the ball vertically. Ginnelly can't be the only one to rely on here.

The second is cutting edge up top. We didn't look like scoring on Wednesday and even then on Sunday we should have put that game to bed a lot quicker as we were quite anxious in front of goal. I get the feeling we're going to have spend a lot of domestic games that we 'should win' expending a lot more effort in front of goal than necessary and it having a knock on effect on squad fatigue.

 

 

[DC92]

When we signed Shankland 6 or 7 weeks ago and Neilson was talking about getting 3 more in I really didn't think a +1 net gain would be all we'd get.

When most of our players are fit we're a very competent team from back to middle and up to the edge of the box. After that I think we lack the unpredictability and ruthlessness to help us kick on. Even Barrie McKay, who is excellent, is a very "nice" footballer. We've got plenty of order but not enough chaos.

Simms brought a bit of that last season and I thought we'd look to add a couple of players to try and replicate and build on that. It hasn't materialised for whatever reason and that's disappointing.

When you add in the mental fixture congestion and some bad luck with injuries I think it's essential we bring in a couple of free agents. If we don't do that then the wheels could really come off by October when we've got an extremely tough fixture list. If we don't do something today then I'd also say the very lucrative 6 points we're hoping for against Riga are in doubt. 

[DC92]

Incidentally I think Humphrys is an attempt to add some of that chaos. Seems to be quick, strong and a good dribbler. His goal record is actually reasonable with 0.43 goals per 90 minutes over the last 4 seasons in League One.

It is, however, physically impossible to get excited about a loan from Wigan.

[the jambo-rocker]

23 minutes ago, DC92 said:

Incidentally I think Humphrys is an attempt to add some of that chaos. Seems to be quick, strong and a good dribbler. His goal record is actually reasonable with 0.43 goals per 90 minutes over the last 4 seasons in League One.

It is, however, physically impossible to get excited about a loan from Wigan.

Emotionally too. Everything about him screams an ice-cold data signing.

[Dons_1988]

33 minutes ago, DC92 said:

It is, however, physically impossible to get excited about a loan from Wigan.

 

[Tony Wonder]

I think people in our support in general are in danger of losing their minds going by some of the stuff I've seen written. Not on here admittedly. However, while we have plenty out injured, only Beni and Boyce are long term, and Rowles is medium term. Kingsley, Halkett, Atkinson and Grant are all due back imminently and you can't just keep chucking bodies at injuries. We are light up top and I'd really like to see a more creative central midfielder, but overall the squad is in good nick and we've not seen Kiomourtzoglou or Humphrys. I also think Connor Smith has shown up well enough to be an option.

Win tomorrow and we could be joint 2nd with a host of players to come back.

[Darren]

We're pretty well covered in the sense that there's 2+ players for every position on the park, it's just that often it's the same player for two or three different roles (eg Michael Smith). There's also a lack of variety in the squad – McKay is the only real playmaker, for example, and there's a general lack of pace. Hopefully Humphrys is decent and provides a different dimension up top.

For all that Neilson and Savage talk about quantity over quality, there's a pretty significant drop off in various areas once you go beyond the first 11. You could make arguments for Stewart, Sibbick, Atkinson, Mackay-Steven, Ginnelly and Henderson not being up to the required standard.

[Insert Amusing Pseudonym]

24 minutes ago, Darren said:

We're pretty well covered in the sense that there's 2+ players for every position on the park, it's just that often it's the same player for two or three different roles (eg Michael Smith). There's also a lack of variety in the squad – McKay is the only real playmaker, for example, and there's a general lack of pace. Hopefully Humphrys is decent and provides a different dimension up top.

For all that Neilson and Savage talk about quantity over quality, there's a pretty significant drop off in various areas once you go beyond the first 11. You could make arguments for Stewart, Sibbick, Atkinson, Mackay-Steven, Ginnelly and Henderson not being up to the required standard.

On the last point that's just inevitable at our budget.  Amazing as having 2-3 interchangeable players for each position would be, we simply can't afford it.  So you have a very good core 16 then a decent set of backups.  When you get to the point 5 or 6 of the best players are out, you're going to suffer a bit.  

[Darren]

2 minutes ago, Insert Amusing Pseudonym said:

On the last point that's just inevitable at our budget.  Amazing as having 2-3 interchangeable players for each position would be, we simply can't afford it.  So you have a very good core 16 then a decent set of backups.  When you get to the point 5 or 6 of the best players are out, you're going to suffer a bit.  

It's not especially surprising, it's just a bit galling when they constantly bang on about quality and you've paid £30+ to watch Cheesy fail to save a single shot (before the Parkhead miracle).