Inside transfer deadline day at Hearts and what value Critchley sees in Scottish market amid 'crossover' hunt

Neil Critchley says Hearts have been left pleased with their January transfer work - as he talks the importance of doing some Scottish-based shopping.

It was a low-key deadline day for the Premiership side, who brought in left-back Harry Milne as youngster Ethan Drysdale went the other way to Partick Thistle. Elton Kabangu, Jamie McCart, Michael Steinwender and Sander Kartum also arrived during a busy January at large.

Liam Boyce, Kye Rowles, Andres Salazar and Daniel Oyegoke were amongst those to leave with Malachi Boateng departing for Plymouth Argyle on deadline day. Providing insight on deadline day at Hearts, Critchley was asked by the Edinburgh Evening News about whether a Boateng replacement was considered, but the head coach is happy with his options.

There’s also a view to the entirety of the window rather than a last-minute trolley dash. He said: “No, we were quite happy with where we're at and what we've got in that position. So, no, I'd say it was discussed about Mal and whether we felt it was right for him in the club and that was something that he wanted to do. So, we're all happy with that situation.

“There's a bit of a hysteria around transfer deadline day because everyone gets fixated on that one day. But it's January as a whole and if you look at the work that we've done across January then I'm very pleased. It got slightly busy Sunday night and Monday morning.

“Obviously with Mal departing and Harry coming in. But other than that, the rest of the day was relatively quiet. I know how much Harry’s looking forward to it. You can sense the excitement in his voice when you speak to him. I'm delighted for him, I really am.

“You want to give people an opportunity in life and people who are deserving of it. His journey's fascinating. What he's always done is he's found a way to adapt to the level that he's playing at and then eventually thrive. He's always stepped up, coped and then gone on and thrived at the level he's playing at. We're hopeful and confident that he can do that again.”

With managerial experience at QPR and Blackpool, Critchley has had peers into the Scottish market before. He didn’t end up poaching anyone from that pool but says it’s an area of recruitment that has strong importance put upon it. Hearts recruited Blair Spittal, James Penrice and Yan Dhanda on pre-contracts last term with McCart arriving from Rotherham United, armed with trophy-winning experience at St Johnstone. Then there’s the Milne addition from the Championship.

He said: “When I was at Blackpool I looked at a number of players up in Scotland. For whatever reason that was, I don't think we did or we ever did sign one. But I was aware of a lot of players up in Scotland. I watched a lot of the teams and you're always wanting to try and get the best talent from in and around you. I think that's important to have that core of homegrown or players that have played in this country because they know the demands of the league.

“They know the style of the league, the intensity that's required every week. But that doesn't mean to say that you can't look further afield like in Elton or Michael and Sander.

“You're looking at players who are maybe playing further afield but they're playing in leagues that are similar to Scotland or the crossover between the two leagues isn't massive so they can adapt when they come here. That's what we're obviously looking to do longer term.”