Paul Hartley has backed Steven Naismith to lead Hearts out of trouble and take them back to the right end of the table.
He may, though, have to wait until after this weekend to do so.
Hearts head to Celtic Park this weekend having taken just one point so far this term. It has invited a wave of pressure on Naismith but former Celtic and Hearts midfielder Hartley believes that the Tynecastle boss has to stand firm.
“Steven proved last year that he is a good manager,” said Hartley. “He can get his ideas across. He has made a few signings and it has not quite gelled yet. He has enough credit in the bank but when you are manager at a club like Hearts, the supporters demand that you are up there challenging, not just in the leagues but in the cups as well.
“Steven is a good young manager and he is going through a tough spell. Every manager does. We have all been through that – look at Brendan [Rodgers] last season . He didn’t get off to the best start. The European thing has been a hindrance for Steven but hopefully they can get a good run of form. They are too good a squad to be where they are and I firmly believe that Steven will get it right.”
And he has insisted that Naismith has to be given the time to get his best side on the pitch while pointing out that clubs without any real depth tend to toil when it comes to balancing the duel demands of domestic and European football.
“When you manage a club like Hearts you are always under pressure because you are expected to be in top three,” said Hartley. “It has been a poor start and the last place you want to go when you are in a poor run of form is Celtic Park. It is a really difficult task for Steven on Saturday.
“You want a strong performance and you want to pick a team that can be hard to beat. I don’t think playing in Europe has helped Hearts. There has been a struggle coming back to the domestic league. Celtic can pick two XIs and balance it.
“If you look at St Mirren, Kilmarnock, Hearts have struggled, Aberdeen last year and Dundee United a few years ago, they struggle in terms of the depths of the squad.”
Hartley expects that Naismith will set out his stall to try and frustrate Celtic.
“Celtic are starting games so fast in recent weeks and have been scoring early goals,” he said.”Hearts will have to defend for the majority of the game but when they get an opportunity they will have to go and take it and have that calmness and discipline about them. They showed last year they can go to Celtic and get a result. Steven will think he will
“But Steven won’t be judged on this game. There aren’t may who would expect Hearts to go and get a result on Saturday.
“I have watched most of their [Celtic’s] games and they have been electric. Callum McGregor has been in top form and not having the international games will have helped him. They have so many players to chose from in that area of the pitch and they have been in top form.”
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