Neil Critchley provides peek behind Hearts summer planning curtain & one thing won't change amid European hunt

Hearts head coach Neil Critchley says European football won’t define his summer planning in and around Tynecastle.

The Jambos are looking to tie up a place in the top six and some results going their way - defeats for St Mirren and Motherwell - could allow them to do so against Dundee United on Sunday. That would avoid a cup final-style clash with Motherwell, just a point behind currently sixth-placed Hearts, on the final day of the season pre-split.

United hold a five point gap over Hearts in fifth and a win would see them stretch eight clear with six games to play. Celtic winning the Scottish Cup would make fifth spot a European place but Critchley will have designs on winning that competition himself, currently at the semi-final stage against Aberdeen.

Summer planning

Regardless of whether they are in Europe or preparing for the Premier Sports Cup group stages, targets they have in mind will stay the same according to Critchley. Hearts’ head coach said, with a disagreement at the start time of the League Cup in July: “They're vital games for the club and the bigger picture. They're important games. But you have a plan regardless. We've shown progression. We're moving in the right direction.

“We want to compete at the top end of the league. But you have a plan either way and that plan is consistent. It won't change. The players and the targets that we've got won't change whether we win the next two games or lose the next two games. We want to bring players here we think are good enough to improve our group. That won't change whether we end up winning the last seven games on the bounce or we lose seven games.

“I've never experienced that, where you're playing cup games in pre-season. I don't think anyone would be in favour of that. Again, supporters, players, staff, everyone. It doesn't seem to make sense why you'd put really important games within your pre-season. We have to plan for all scenarios, but we also don't know where we're going to be and what our schedule is going to be. That's determined by how we finish the season, and that's on us.”

European element

While thoughts of action in the Europa League or Conference League is a selling point Critchley can use if Hearts manage to clinch European football, he insists it’s not something that’s been brought up in signing conversations yet. He explained: “Every player we've brought to this club or I've spoken to, Europe has never been something they have mentioned to me.

“This club is a very attractive proposition for lots of players. Now, we want to be in Europe. We want to be competing at the top end of the league. We have the potential to be doing that every single season. If we get that right, then we should be. The players can see that and feel that. It also then comes down to how good I am at being a salesman. So far, I think we've done a good job of that. Hopefully, we can continue to do that.

“Of course, it helps. But I'll be honest. It's not been a deciding factor between players coming here and not coming here. They see what we're trying to do. They see the team and how we're trying to move forward. They can see the ambition that we've got as a football club. Hopefully, they want to jump on board with that.”

When he looks at team photo pictures on the wall, Critchley can already see how Hearts are changing under his leadership, and expects some more change this summer. He added: “The squad's evolved quite a lot. I was going past on my way home the other day as I was coming out of the office, there was a team photograph. I think that was December time I looked up. When you started looking at it, I was thinking, he's not here and he's not here.

“I think there was about six. Now, we've brought some players in, five players in, I think it was in January. But that's quite a lot of change already when you actually think about it. So I'm sure the squad will evolve again in the summer, naturally. But we're always thinking ahead. We're always succession planning. As everyone does, we want to try and recruit the best players we can to play the way we want to play, and have a really competitive squad. At the moment, you can feel that within the squad now, that there's competition for places. They know they're going to have to be training well if they want to be in the team and stay in the team.”