Bjorn Johnsen pushing for start against Caley '“ Hearts boss

Bjorn Johnsen is pushing for a starting place when Hearts travel to Inverness Caledonian Thistle tomorrow.
Bjorn Johnsen has made just one start for Hearts so farBjorn Johnsen has made just one start for Hearts so far
Bjorn Johnsen has made just one start for Hearts so far

Head coach Robbie Neilson admitted today that the American striker is forcing his way into his thoughts for the trip to the Highlands.

Johnsen has made just one start in eight appearances for Hearts so far and is eager to secure a sustained run in the side. Until now, he and fellow forward Robbie Muirhead have mostly had to play second fiddle to Neilson’s preferred two-man forward line of Conor Sammon and Tony Watt.

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Hearts head north in search of goals and points following Wednesday night’s 2-0 defeat at Kilmarnock. Neilson will consider one or two changes but is expected to keep faith with the core of his team.

After opening his Hearts scoring account against Dundee earlier this month, Johnsen could be handed a starting role at the Caledonian Stadium.

“He’s definitely pushing for a place. All four of the strikers are doing well and their confidence is high. It’s my decision who we play,” Neilson said.

“We have two games in four days with a bit of travelling in between so it’s important that we try to use all four of them.

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“Bjorn is a buoyant character and he’s full of energy. It was good for him to score his first goal against Dundee.

“All the strikers are off the mark now, although we’d probably have liked them to score more goals.”

Asked about other changes to the team following a below-par display on Wednesday, Neilson replied: “I’ll take a look at it because it’s a long season. We’ve done really well so far this season and we had a blip on Wednesday night.

“I’m not going to start jumping the gun and changing this or that.

“We have to keep developing how we play but we also maybe have to alter it a bit when we go to certain places.”

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