Hearts Manager Neil Critchley Discusses 0-2 Defeat to Heidenheim

Hearts head coach Neil Critchley conveyed to BBC Scotland his appreciation for the fans’ support, stating: “I really appreciated the supporters cheering us off the pitch because it means a lot and showed they appreciated our performance.” Critchley acknowledged the team’s and supporters’ dissatisfaction with the defeat, but emphasized the team’s effort: “I don’t think they’re happy, we’re not happy, we can never be happy when we lose but I think we played with real aggression, real purpose.” He compared the performance to the Omonoia game, noting the failure to convert opportunities: “It was arguably as good as the Omonoia game, we just didn’t take our chances tonight when we were on top and when that happens, you always run the risk of being punished and we were by two minutes of real quality.” He further described Heidenheim’s physical attributes and counter-attacking prowess: “Physically they are very good, landing on second balls, they’ve got pace and power on the break which they showed and you know you’re not going to dominate a team like that for 90 minutes, you’re going to have to defend well in moments of the game.” Critchley concluded this point by reiterating the importance of clinical finishing: “When you’re on top you have to make sure you take those chances and be clinical and unfortunately we’ve not done that tonight.” The coach also commented on the dynamic nature of matches against strong opponents: “The game is not always going to follow the same pattern for 90 minutes when you’re playing against good teams. “It would be foolish and naive of us to think at half-time we would just come out and the same things were going to happen.” He clarified his overall sentiment, stating: “I wasn’t disappointed with how we played tonight at all, I’m just disappointed with the result.” Regarding player Lawrence Shankland, Critchley expressed confidence despite his current scoring drought: “It’s not falling for him. I thought he was excellent tonight, his all round performance, the way he held the ball up, he led the line, he brought others into the game… we were all desperate for him to score.” He added: “We’ll keep believing in him. I saw Steve Clarke say they’re going to give him a bit of love and that will be a big boost for him. “He will score goals, he will.” Addressing Hearts’ standing in the Conference League, Critchley maintained an optimistic outlook: “I think we’re in a good position. If you said before the competition we’d be six from nine, I think you’d have gone we might settle for that. “Not before tonight of course, though.” He concluded by stating that consistent performance and mentality would lead to victories: “If we keep producing that level of performance with that mentality then I think we will win games of football.”