Hearts can 'put down marker' by beating Dundee to go top - Robbie Neilson
- Published
Robbie Neilson says he has to "move on" from his three-match touchline ban
Hearts manager Robbie Neilson says his "hungry" squad aim to "put a marker down" by beating Dundee to take over at the top of the Premiership on Saturday.
The Edinburgh side are a point behind Rangers after last weekend's 1-1 draw away to the reigning champions.
Steven Gerrard's side do not visit St Mirren until Sunday.
"Hearts throughout the years have good starts like this, but it's about can we sustain that throughout the season?" Neilson said.
"Obviously Rangers don't play until the Sunday, so it gives us a chance to put a wee marker down."
Neilson will have to watch from the stand at Tynecastle after being shown a red card at Ibrox and having decided not to appeal against a subsequent three-match touchline suspension after fearing it could be increased if he did.
"I'm disappointed with it," he said. "In general, when you go to Ibrox or Parkhead, something like that's going to happen and I just need to move on from it.
"It's a home game, the crowd will be behind us, so the players will be fine."
Neilson thought that, in addition to having a squad hungry for success, Hearts had benefitted from the addition of signings made before the closure of the last transfer window.
"At the start of the season, we had probably two players who could come on and influence the game, but now we've got six outfield and two who aren't making the squad," he said.
One of those to have made an impression is Alex Cochrane and Neilson was asked if the 21-year-old midfielder's bright start on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion could lead to a permanent transfer.
"He has done fantastically well, but we're nine games in, so they've got to do it throughout the season," Neilson said. "There's a number of players we'd like to sign again, but it's early doors."
Cochrane, who is out of contract with the Premier League club in the summer, replied "we'll just have to wait and see" when asked about the possibility of staying at Tynecastle while admitting that he still hopes to break into the Brighton first team.
"It's always been a goal of mine - I'm a local lad there," he said. "It's something I want to see in the future, but I just have to do what I do and the situation will probably take care of itself.
"I've definitely done better than I thought I would do up here, so as it goes along, my goals have changed and different situations could potentially develop in the future."