Former Hibs star sells Hearts ace on transfer exit destination as Trent Alexander Arnold reacts to done deal
The Real Madrid man has lauded the deal - as reasons behind a Hearts transfer exit are shared.
Yan Dhanda has revealed the former Hibs man in his ear over swapping Hearts for Dundee -as Trent Alexander Arnold gives it the thumbs up.
The playmaker joined the Jambos last summer after an impressive stint with Ross County but found starts limited under Steven Naismith and Neil Critchley, with that trend set to continue under new head coach Derek McInnes. He has now joined Dundee - managed by former Hearts captain Steven Pressley - on a season long loan deal.
It has attracted plenty of reaction, including from the Bernabeu. Amid a host of past and present Hearts faces, fellow Liverpool academy graduate Alexander-Arnold put ‘Let’s go brother’ beneath a social media post from Dhanda over the switch. Former Hibs striker Simon Murray linked up with the midfielder at Ross County and Dundee’s Hearts loanee says the Dark Blues favourite was on the phone constantly trying to seal a deal.
Why Yan Dhanda signed for Dundee
He said: “It’s very good to be here at the club. I had a lot of conversations with Simon (Murray), and he told me a lot of good things about the club, and when I heard so many good things and what the manager is trying to do, I was desperate to come here and to start playing.
“Simon was onto me quite a lot, saying people at Dundee really like you, and I was just wanting to play football and get consistent game time. Simon spoke highly of the place, and the manager phoned me and told me where I fit into his plans and the systems he is going to play. The chat went really well, and from there it all happened quite quickly.
“Simon has been phoning me at least seven times a day and has been on my case for quite a while. Especially in the last couple of days, he’s been phoning me a lot, making sure I come here. At Ross County, me and Simon had a really good relationship on the pitch, and I assisted him quite a few times. He was someone that was great to play with, and he’s one of my favourite players that I’ve played with. But we are also really good friends off the pitch, and when he wanted to get me here, I trusted him because he spoke so highly of the place.”
Steven Pressley reaction to Rangers vs Dundee
While not involved in the game due to suspension, Dhanda got a glimpse of the fighting spirit in his new side’s ranks when they drew 1-1 at Rangers on Saturday. Ryan Astley put them ahead and Nasser Djiga’s red card bolstered their chances of a famous win before a late James Tavernier penalty.
Pressley said: “I went on record all week talking about the perfect performance, you know, the club since 2001 haven't picked up a point here, so we needed an incredible performance, we needed luck, and I think the players delivered that. They were exceptional. I said to them in the dressing room I could have cried for them at the end there, they left every last ounce out on the pitch, they showed the courage that I spoke about.”