AFTER a strenuous few days, Csaba Laszlo has emerged fighting and pledged to resolve the issues which contributed to Hearts' recent defeats.
The Hungarian is dismayed by a downturn of three losses in four games but is equally committed to confronting forthcoming challenges.
Laszlo is preparing for an Edinburgh derby in 11 days' time. His squad is decimated due to players' international
commitments but those who do attend Riccarton this week are being left in little doubt regarding the manager's demands.
In an exclusive and candid interview, he criticised younger members of his squad for an apparent indolent attitude. He also assumed a portion of blame himself, declaring that inspiration to overturn recent results must come from within.
Saturday's defeat by Kilmarnock angered the manager, who explained he will always accept defeat if Hearts are outclassed in a footballing context. However, he believes the 2-1 defeat at Tynecastle and the recent reverse at Falkirk were born of inattentiveness and is now striving to address the issue.
"I'm not disappointed but I think I must give the team more power. I must be more present," said Laszlo.
"I am not unhappy, I am angry a lot of the time but I know what I must do and I will do it.
"Against Rangers and Dundee United I was angry because nobody likes to lose. Rangers beat us because they were better, as were Dundee United, but the two games that have made me very angry and disappointed were Falkirk and Kilmarnock. In these two games, we beat ourselves and I cannot understand it.
"This is not a question of working harder, it's about being more concentrated on the field.
"In Germany, they say if you are young you take life too easy and this is my problem. Sometimes, with my young team, they take it too easy.
"If you have more responsibility you don't go so easy because you know you must concentrate all game, not 80 per cent or for 80 minutes or only when you have the ball.
"My philosophy about football is for a short passing game. You must move without the ball and the guy who has it should have two possibilities to pass. I talk about dynamic triangles and, if you don't do this, you have a problem.
"You cannot stay up the field and wait for the long ball, there must be offensive pressing against the opponents and that is very important in modern football. If you don't get the ball back, then you fall back into position.
"We learned that and we were doing that after the training camp in Germany. We beat Hull City with this attitude and started very well in the league.
"After the two-week break some injured players will be back and I hope the players understand that the good beginning was not only an accident.
"The team was prepared, everybody was prepared. Now they think 'this is okay, now we know everything about football'. No, you can't stop. This makes me angry."
Laszlo was especially upset by the number of long balls Hearts employed during Saturday's first half, something he managed to rectify at half-time. Like any manager, he cannot legislate for the actions of players on the pitch, a matter which frustrates every football coach worldwide.
His present aim is to re-install certain values evident during the early weeks of the season when Hearts climbed to third in the SPL table.
"I'm talking about the whole team, not one person or even two people," he continued.
"All the players must understand and after the break we can go back up in the league. Where we finish is very important but you must collect points for a good finish. I must bring this philosophy back."
Laszlo could not have envisaged the goalscoring problems which have transpired since he joined Hearts. Only two of this season's strikes have come from forwards – one apiece for Jamie Mole and Audrius Ksanavicius – leaving the manager with something of a conundrum over who can provide a killer instinct. Despite the presence of Mole, Ksanavicius, Christian Nade, Mike Tullberg, and Juho Makela, the name of Gary Glen is continually thrown at Laszlo as a potential saviour.
Reared at Riccarton as a product of Hearts' highly-regarded youth academy, Glen scored two goals in six first-team appearances towards the end of last season before blotting his copybook somewhat with a red card in the final game against Gretna.
He hasn't played since, and judging by Laszlo's views that situation is not likely to change in the near future.
"Gary Glen is an 18-year-old guy who, for me, needs guidance," he said.
"You can ask about Gary Glen but I see him in training every day. He will be a good player and he is talented but I know what stage he is at. At the moment, the question is not Gary Glen, the question is winning games whether with him or without him.
"Gary must work and be more concentrated. He has a future but he is without any experience and we must help him.
"I think we have a lot of strikers in the team who have more experience than Gary and are further forward in their development. This is my opinion. If somebody wants to come into the team he must show in training that he would like to play football."
Laszlo, although suffering like many Hearts supporters, is clearly not one to divert from his principles. It is that steadfast belief he will rely on to revive Hearts' fortunes.
The full article contains 944 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
