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| <-Page | <-Team | Mon 13 Nov 2006 Falkirk 1 Hearts 1 | Team-> | Page-> |
| <-Srce | <-Type | Herald ------ Top | Type-> | Srce-> |
| Eduard Malofeev | <-auth | MARTIN McMILLAN | auth-> | Mike McCurry |
| 48 | of 080 | Andrius Velicka 65 Latapy 84 | L SPL | A |
Time to kiss and make up at TynecastleMARTIN McMILLAN November 15 2006George Foulkes, the former Hearts chairman, believes majority shareholder Vladimir Romanov can still lead the club forward, but only if he repairs his damaged relationship with club captain Steven Pressley. Foulkes does not think the dispute with Pressley will necessarily mean the end of the Tynecastle supporters' backing for Romanov. The Labour peer, who stepped down as chairman after Romanov sacked Phil Anderton, the chief executive, just over a year ago, is now actively encouraging a process of reconciliation. Foulkes said: "I got to know Steven Pressley very well during my year and a half as chairman. I have a great respect for his integrity as well as his footballing skills. "He was a key person in helping the club through difficult times involving a number of managerial changes. Steven is the sort of person who deserves to be treated properly and with respect. "When I resigned as chairman I made it clear that, while I shared Romanov's vision, I didn't agree with his management style and particularly the way he dealt with employees. "The next few weeks are critical for Hearts. The fans are perplexed and confused and some of the players are clearly at loggerheads. The time is now imperative that there should be some reconciliation if Hearts are to progress, which means give and take on both sides. "The initiative in terms of any olive branch needs to come from Romanov and, if that happened, we would get back to our winning ways. I have been encouraging people who I think might be able to influence him to try and do that." Alex Koslovski, the Hearts sporting director, insists "rumours about his captaincy unsettled him [Pressley] and he asked our coach not to put him in the game because he is mentally not 100% fit to participate." But Craig Gordon, the goalkeeper, claimed after the 1-1 draw against Falkirk that no reason had been given for Pressley's omission and the Scotland defender "wants to play". Foulkes added: "I just hope some way can be found for [Pressley] to be brought in as captain. We need to find some harmony at the club. We have to have everyone at the club pushing in the same direction. Romanov does need to hold out an olive branch to Steven in particular and to the Scottish players and to the fans. "I don't talk to Romanov directly but I speak to people around him and I've asked them to try to influence Romanov. The Scottish players are the soul of the club, they are very much the backbone of the club and a lot of people were willing to fold other difficulties as long as they were there. "But if Pressley, Gordon and Hartley were to go that would create huge difficulties. Hearts have a long tradition and the owners are merely custodians of that tradition. "I was responsible for bringing in Romanov when the club was at a time of real crisis with the sale of Tynecastle imminent. Romanov was the saviour and was lauded by the supporters and I'd like to get back to that with his name sung from the stands. "That can only be achieved if we are all working in the same direction. We've come to expect the unexpected. I was at Falkirk and also at the Hibs game and as I left Easter Road the fans were not angry but frustrated, perplexed, confused at what would hit them next. Literally punch-drunk. "We all want the club to succeed and we saw Romanov as a method of achieving that and people were scared to criticise him. But it's becoming more and more bizarre." Foulkes' fears were shared by Rudi Skacel, the former Hearts winger, who said he felt sorry for the club's fans and claimed that Romanov is trying to "kill the club". Skacel, now at Southampton, said: "It's a horrible situation at Hearts and it's hard to comment. But Mr Romanov has made a big mistake with Elvis; it's unbelievable what he's doing, just horrible. "I'm finished with Hearts but I still look on at the bad decisions Mr Romanov is making. I'm very disappointed; it's hard for the fans and all the staff. They do not deserve this. It's really crazy at the moment. "It must be very difficult for Elvis, a big player for Hearts and a club legend. He doesn't deserve this either. I don't know what will happen next, it's horrible for everyone. Mr Romanov wants to probably kill the club."  Taken from the Herald |
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