Robbie Neilson ready to manage a Hearts squad containing nine internationalists

John Souttar and Steven Naismith are just two of Hearts' international players.

Managing a squad containing nine international players in the second tier of Scottish football may be slightly surreal for Robbie Neilson. However, that is the position he finds himself in ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.

By returning to take charge of Hearts for a second time, he has inherited a group boasting vast experience at the top level with countries like Scotland, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Czech Republic.

Bizarre as it sounds, Neilson could field a team dominated by international players every week in this season’s Championship. It is a prospect he welcomes, if one which may leave the rest of the division feeling slightly apprehensive.

Pre-season training is due begin at Riccarton early next month to ready Hearts for competitive action in October. Neilson is well prepared for what lies ahead.

He added the Scotland international goalkeeper Craig Gordon to a squad already containing Zdenek Zlamal and Colin Doyle, who hold caps for the Czech and Irish national teams respectively.

Right-back Michael Smith is a Norther Ireland regular, while centre-backs John Souttar and Christophe Berra have also represented Scotland.

Forwards Conor Washington and Liam Boyce are part of the Northern Ireland side alongside Smith, and club captain Steven Naismith is one of Scotland’s more reliable goalscorers.

Another striker, Uche Ikpeazu, could add his name to the international roll in the near future. He remains firmly in the thoughts of the Uganda coach Jonathan McKinstry after being called up for two Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in March this year, only for the coronavirus outbreak to postpone his international bow.

Similarly, young Bobby Burns has already broken into Northern Ireland’s senior squad, left-back Ben Garuccio has trained with Australia, and defender Craig Halkett has been touted for a Scotland call-up over the last 18 months.

There is no questioning the strength and experience available to Neilson for the months ahead. His challenge is to get every one of his charges performing at optimum level.

Ultimately he will put what he feels is his best team on the pitch, and there are still some new recruits to arrive over the coming weeks before the campaign begins in October.

He is nonetheless intrigued by having so many internationalists to choose from as he tries to guide Hearts back towards the Scottish Premiership.

“It is nice to have that. There are areas of the team I'd like to improve, but there are areas that are more than adequate for what we need,” he told the Evening News.

“I looked at the squad when I came back and I believe we have some really good players here. I've said already that I think it's a bit imbalanced.

“In certain areas we have too many players, and there are other areas where I feel we need to recruit. It's a case of just moving some of the squad about.”

He would like to sign one or two creative wide men and a new central midfielder before matches begin.

“We have a very good group with some really top players. It's a case of getting a few in but also just getting boys enjoying their football again,” added Neilson. “They need to want to go out and train and go out and play.

“That’s what we want to create. We want to have a positive environment so that everyone is enjoying their football. The more experience you have, the more it helps.”

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