Heart of Midlothian

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Is the Scottish Premiership in need of a shake-up? If so, how do you go about it?

News emerged on Tuesday that the SPFL is considering changing Scotland's top flight to a 10, 14 or 16-team division in an attempt to help reduce fixture congestion.

In its current 12-team form, the clubs split into a top and bottom six after 33 rounds of matches, with 38 rounds played altogether.

That format has been in place since 2000-01 and retaining that model is also an option, but reports have also suggested the split could be scrapped.

For any fresh structure to pass, it needs the backing of 11 of the 12 Premiership clubs, and eight out of 10 from the Championship plus 75% of League One and League Two combined.

And judging by the fan reaction to the mere thought of reducing the league to a 10-team division, you would have to assume that idea is already unlikely.

Speaking on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast, former Premiership players Cammy Bell and Cillian Sheridan provided their views on a potential restructure.

Expansion is the only option for former Rangers and Kilmarnock goalkeeper Bell, while ex-Celtic striker Sheridan would like to see the split retained.

"I think we need a little bit of freshness about our game," Bell said. "So, if we can expand that league, then absolutely do it. We've got big enough clubs now that can generate good crowds.

"We're at a time just now where we've got the potential of trying to change it and certainly for me it's got to be expansion."

"The split works now," Sheridan added. "When I first came over and saw the whole split thing, I just never really got it. But in the past few years it has been quite interesting.

"If the league is wrapped up, if relegation is wrapped up, it does add a little bit of excitement to things in terms of teams getting into the top six and having to get European football."

Heart of Midlothian head coach Neil Critchley has reassured midfielder Yan Dhanda and winger Alan Forrest they still have a part to play at Tynecastle Park despite falling out of the starting line-up this year. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Greg Playfair
Fan writer

As we enter the month of April, we'll know in a couple of weeks if the players and staff at Hearts are considered foolish or fully supported by fans as we look to cement our place in the Premiership top six and reach the Scottish Cup final.

Following the 3-0 defeat at leaders Celtic, optimism has taken a slight hit for some Jambos and I can see why.

Head Coach Neil Critchley's 'big game' record is often brought up in the wake of a defeat, and it's true he has failed to beat Celtic, Rangers, Aberdeen or Hibs in his time in charge.

The worst of the lot of course is the Petrocub game and even talking about it now still angers me three months on.

People can look at the result from Celtic Park and shrug their shoulders and say 'What do you expect? You got off lightly,' which is true, considering Celtic sat in park mode in the second half never mind going into first gear.

Critchley set the team up to press Celtic high and went with a 3-4-1-2, and we fashioned some good first-half opportunities through Lewis Neilson and James Wilson. Both players should have scored but Celtic were clinical, netting with their only three chances in the opening 45 minutes.

In fairness, Neilson is only in the team because we had four centre-backs unavailable and Wilson has just turned 18.

There's always a mental obstacle for players to overcome when facing Celtic or Rangers away and as soon as player of the year-elect Daizen Maeda scored the opener, you could just tell from the body language that any belief to head back along the M8 with at least a point had evaporated.

Critchley and the team need to pick themselves up quickly for the visit of Dundee United on Sunday, a match we have to win to keep pace in the race for top six.

With two matches to go until the Scottish Premiership splits, only four points separate the teams in sixth and ninth as they fight to squeeze into the top half and potentially secure European football next season.

Dundee United's narrow win in Dingwall means they are almost certain to be in the top half regardless of their results against Hearts and St Johnstone before the split.

Data company Opta give Jim Goodwin's side a 99% chance of being in the top six given their six-point buffer and superior goal difference to St Mirren, Motherwell and Ross County.

At the other end of the spectrum, they rate County's chance as next to zero, at 0.3%, given they have a four-point gap to make up on sixth-placed Hearts with a far poorer goal difference.

Hearts are only one point above both St Mirren and Motherwell, but the Tynecastle side's superior goal difference is almost worth an extra point at this stage, and they are heavy favourites to sneak in with a 66% chance.

However, Neil Critchley's side play Motherwell away in their final match before the split, which could prove crucial given the congested nature of the table.

St Mirren are away to Dundee and home to Ross County as they attempt to overhaul Hearts, buoyed by their dominant 5-1 win over Kilmarnock on Saturday.

And Motherwell boss Michael Wimmer is hoping to bounce back from their defeat by Aberdeen when they travel to Rugby Park next weekend before that all-important match against Hearts.

"The league always feels - Celtic and Rangers are a bit different - like you could beat everyone," said John Sutton, who played as a striker for three of the sides hoping for a top-six spot in Hearts, St Mirren and Motherwell.

"The split gets knocked a little bit, I really liked it as a player. You make the top six, and it's game on, trying to get European qualification.

"I think if you take Celtic and Rangers out of things to an extent, every game's a very tricky game. I expect the picture to change this weekend and I expect it to change the following weekend as well."

Watch all the highlights from Celtic's victory over Hearts in the Scottish Premiership.

Available to UK users only.

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Neil Critchley said he will "live and die" by the principles of how he wants Hearts to play football, after they succumbed to a 3-0 loss against Celtic.

The Gorgie side started brightly at Celtic Park but soon lost three first-half goals and failed to land a punch on Celtic after that.

That led to Hearts boss Critchley admitted he was looking for "damage limitation" ahead of an uneventful second half.

"I don't want the players to lose belief in who I want us to be," he said. "In my opinion, as a coach, you always have to protect or develop the traditions of the football club.

"It's always been built on going toe-to-toe, being on the front foot, being aggressive. We'll learn from that."

Hearts failed to have a shot between the 38th and 87th minute in the game, as they struggled to create anything in the second-half.

"I want us to be that team and get better at being the team we were in the first half and doing that for longer, and doing it better and doing it against top opponents.

"That's what we've got to strive for. That's where we want to be and this is the type of teams we want to be playing against and competing against for longer every week. That's my test as a coach and that's where I want us to move forward as a club.

"The principles of how we play the game, I will live and die by that and protect those principles that I think represent the club that I think we should be."

Hearts fans, we asked for your views on the the 3-0 loss to Celtic in Glasgow yesterday. Here's a taste of what you had to say...

Bobster: Tame, gutless, unacceptable. Hearts rolled over again in a predictable 3-0 loss — no fight, no urgency, no pride. Neil Critchley must realise that he is on borrowed time. Fans deserve better than this spineless showing. Why should we accept it?

Jim: Absolutely crazy to move your best defender into midfield against the best team in Scotland. We have no chance of progressing with this guy in charge. Next season will be the same. A mid-table team.

Ian: "The players did exactly what I asked them to do," Critchley said. Did he ask them not to score any goals and concede three by half time? Give us a break! It's been a poor season performance-wise from Hearts, under both managers. The defence is still suspect, midfield over run and poor finishing up front. Two wins will see us in the top six, but then what?

County Jambo: Nothing changes when we go to Glasgow. The shape didn't look right from the off and we took too long to change. Desperate for pace all over the team. Top six is going to be a scrap.

Peter: Critchley was right to take the initiative and attack from the outset. In doing that, we must capitalise on the chances created, but we did not. Celtic were Celtic, fast at the counter attack, even when under pressure, and our defence is not at full strength.

This game was never likely to yield anything and we now focus on winning the next two games as that is all that matters. Results for Hibs and Aberdeen make it much less likely now to secure a European place, but that is not our immediate focus.

Steve: Our potential player of the year, James Penrice, who plays left-back gets moved into midfield. Our left back yesterday, who's never played in the Premiership gets his debut away to the soon-to-be champions. Playing three central strikers weakened our already static midfield. It looked like a practice match for Celtic. Critchley not the man.

Alan: Yet another meek capitulation by Hearts at Celtic Park - is it worth turning up? Why not just give them the points? A complete team selection disaster by Critchley. Playing three forwards up front is just suicide. 3-0 actually seems like a victory, it really could have been any score. It is clearly evident that we are lacking real experience and leadership on the park and this surely has to be addressed in the summer. A huge clear out is necessary and I say that as a huge understatement.

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• Daizen Maeda has scored in each of his last five games in the Premiership (seven goals), his longest scoring streak in the competition. He has scored 15 goals in the Premiership this season (two in this game), more than any other player.

• Nicolas Kuhn has assisted eight goals in the Premiership this season (one in this game), more than any other player.

• Celtic have scored in their last 12 games in the Premiership, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of 24 games from 16 March 2024 to 7 December 2024. They've scored in 29 of their 31 games, more often than any other team in the Premiership this season.

• Celtic are unbeaten in their last 32 Premiership matches when leading at half-time (W29, D3) dating back to 10 December 2023 against Kilmarnock (L1-2).

• Celtic have stopped the opposition from scoring a first-half goal in 24 of their 31 games, more than any other in the Premiership this season.

• Jota has contributed to goals in his last six home games in the Premiership (three goals, three assists).

• Hearts did not attempt a shot between the 38th and 87th minute.

• Hearts have a record of W0, D1, L8 when conceding the opening goal away from home in the Premiership this season.

• Lawrence Shankland made his 100th appearance for Hearts in the Premiership.

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Hearts head coach Neil Critchley: "The players did exactly what I asked them to do.

"We wanted to come here and be on the front foot and give it a right go and the players did that and we created some good moments off the back of it.

"It's my responsibility because I've asked the team to play like that and you know there's a high risk and high reward because it can leave you exposed at the back and they go and score with their first two chances.

"We had a chance to go 2-1 and didn't take it, at 3-0 the game is pretty much done. You can only ask as a coach that the players try and do what you've asked them to do to the best of their abilities and I think they did that for the whole game.

"The team we were in the first half, that's what represents Hearts. It's a team that's on the front foot, goes toe-to-toe is brave and has a go. We created good moments by doing that but you know if you're going to open up half the pitch to good athletes there's a risk with that and I'm happy to take that.

"I don't want us to be the team we were in the second half and be passive but I did that because goal difference might come into play in the top six so we had to think about the final outcome of the game."

Were you at Celtic Park or following the match elsewhere?

Either way, we want your views on the game - have your say here.

Martin Dowden
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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The opening period of the game was exactly what Neil Critchley would have been looking for. Hearts troubled Celtic, with Elton Kabangu a nuisance and chances created.

Their shape, though, meant they were likely to be exposed at times and so it proved.

Callum McGregor was afforded too much space for the opener and that allowed Daizen Maeda to escape in behind all to easily.

He got in behind again way too easily for the second and for the third, with the Hearts defence looking brutally open after failing to stop Celtic countering at pace.

The game was done at half-time but not for the want of trying.

Hearts remain sixth and still have a Scottish Cup semi-final to contest. Earlier this season, most supporters would have taken that.

Two fixtures at home to Dundee United and at Motherwell will determine which half of the table they finish in. Given where they have come from this season, they will likely tackle those games with confidence.

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Celtic will be missing Kasper Schmeichel (shoulder) and Liam Scales (cheekbone) but Auston Trusty, Paulo Bernardo, Callum McGregor and James Forrest return.

Hearts pair Jamie McCart and Cammy Devlin are back in contention following their recent injury issues.

Craig Halkett, Stephen Kingsley (both hamstring) and Frankie Kent (quad) are all back in training but unlikely to feature. Aidan Denholm (hamstring) is still out.

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Neil Critchley wants Hearts to "attack" the final stage of the season as they attempt to secure a top-six league finish and win the Scottish Cup.

The Tynecastle side are sixth in the Premiership, two points below Dundee United and a point above Motherwell, with European football next season up for grabs.

Hearts face Celtic, Dundee United and Motherwell in their three league matches before the split, then meet Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden.

"They're vitally important games," Critchley said. "I think the break has just given everyone a chance to breathe a little bit.

"There's only seven, eight weeks left, it'll fly by and we're ready to attack the last period of the season. Nine, hopefully 10 games left, maximum. That's it.

"So we're ready to go. We're fresh, we're positive and we're looking forward to a really exciting end to the season."

Despite the tight nature of the league this season, Critchley insists his is not allowing himself to become distracted by the standings and how many points his side might need to finish in the top half.

"I looked at the league for about two minutes and then decided not to look at it because there are numerous permutations and I gave up trying to work them all out, so I thought that's pointless," he said.

"We just have to concentrate on us. We have three games and who knows how many points we're going to need.

"We have a tough run of games but so do a lot of the other teams around us and we obviously have teams around us that we're due to play."

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Hearts head coach Neil Critchley has been talking to the media before his side's Scottish Premiership trip to Celtic on Saturday.

Here are the best bits from his news conference:

• Critchley is excited to "attack" the last period of the season after the international break allowed everyone the "chance to breathe".

• The Englishman says looking at the league table is "pointless" at this stage because of all the permutations in the race for the top six.

• He warns Hearts cannot get distracted and must solely focus on themselves for their "tough run" of three matches before the split.

• Critchley is braced for the "toughest game you can face in Scotland" when his side travel to Parkhead, but is "hopeful" Hearts can replicate Rangers' victorious performance against the league leaders before the international break.

• He expects his team to "suffer" at times, but says they must be "brave and clinical" when they have possession.

• Gerald Taylor is out with a knee injury but Jamie McCart and Cammy Devlin could both feature. Frankie Kent, Stephen Kingsley and Craig Halkett are also closer to a return.

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Hearts have sold out their initial allocation of 19,000 tickets for next month's Scottish Cup semi-final with Aberdeen at Hampden.

An extra 1,000 briefs have now been made available in the South Stand upper tier for Hearts fans.

Neil Critchley's side face the Dons on 19 April, with the winners meeting either holders Celtic or Johnstone in the final.

Andy Campbell
BBC Sport Scotland

Celtic remain comfortably on course for a fourth successive top-flight title, despite their home loss to Rangers last time out.

Brendan Rodgers' side hold a 13-point lead at the top of the division and will be champions if they win their next four matches.

Hearts, on the other hand, have work to do to secure a top-six place and challenge for Europe.

Winning at Celtic Park is a tall order. Hearts have lost 25 of their last 27 visits in all competitions.

But, under Steven Naismith, Hearts did enjoy a 2-0 away win over the champions last season and Rangers have shown Rodgers' men can be beaten in their own backyard.

Should Neil Critchley's team come away empty handed, it could have big ramifications. Hearts are sixth, a point above Motherwell, four points in front of St Mirren and Ross County and two points below Dundee United.

Read all the weekend Premiership picks

We asked for your question to put to the Romanov: Czar of Hearts production team earlier in the week.

Here are a few answers from the show's producer James Christie:

Fraser asked: How did you actually track Vlad down? How hard was it?

James answered: When we started the podcast we genuinely didn't believe it would be possible to track him down.

It was when talking to Jonas Miklovas, the basketball journalist from episode eight, we discovered he actually went to Moscow to interview him in 2018-ish, but since then his contact had changed.

Last year I was in a WhatsApp conversation with someone in Russia about the podcast and they casually let slip: "I wished him a happy birthday last year." He then spoke to Vladimir for me and sent me his number.

That led to a couple of months of chatting via text before we finally got him into the studio in Russia. So all in all, nowhere near as hard as we, or anyone else, probably imagined.

Dave asked: Brilliant series! Loved the testimonies from the players, staff and journalists etc of the time. As a diehard Jambo, I was surprised to learn new stuff relating to Romanov's 'shenanigans' like they got close to appointing Claudio Raineri. What other big names were Romanov's team talking to - players, managers, KGB etc?

James answered: This didn't make the podcast as we couldn't properly verify it, but Vladimir did an interview with a Russian news outlet and in it he claimed Guus Hiddink had approached him to become Hearts manager.

He says Hiddink wanted £500,000 but that was too much. Vlad also stated he was looking for a like-minded person and not a star. Another potential case of what could've been.

Cameron asked: Hi guys, the show was incredible. Best podcast I've heard. How difficult was it not just getting Vlad but all your other guests, particularly those from Lithuania? I really hope you make more deep dives into other football stories like this.

James answered: I think the passage of time was one of the key reasons we were able to interview a few of the people from within Vlad's inner circle at Hearts. I'm not sure Sergejus Fedotovas would've spoken to us 10 years ago for instance.

A lot of people's first response when I called them about the podcast was "This is such a good idea". The fact they were aware just how incredible a story it was helped a lot with getting people to agree to take part.

Beth asked: Is it true he lives/lived in a nuclear submarine in Russia?

James answered: A few years ago he gave an interview to Russian TV at the submarine and this has been mistranslated in a few newspapers that he'd spent all his money on the submarine and was now living in it.

As far as I know he has never lived in it. In fact, it's actually just a small section of the K-19 submarine that Vlad managed to save before it was scrapped.

If you look around the internet there are a few videos showing you inside it. It is very much just a hollow steel shell, I really don't believe anyone could spend a night in it let alone live in it.

• In all competitions, Celtic have won 13 of their past 15 meetings with Hearts, the exceptions being two 2-0 defeats in the league last season (December 2023, March 2024).

• Hearts have lost 25 of their past 27 away games at Celtic in all competitions (W1 D1), losing their latest two in a row without scoring.

• Celtic have lost two of their past four league games (W2), after having only suffered two defeats in their previous 46 in the Scottish Premiership beforehand (W38 D6).

• Hearts have won seven of their 10 league games in 2025 (D1 L2), with only Celtic and Rangers (both eight) winning more times in the Premiership this calendar year so far.

• Daizen Maeda has scored in each of his past seven league starts for Celtic (nine goals); it's the longest run of consecutive scoring starts by any player in the Scottish Premiership since Kevin van Veen netted in 11 in a row from March to May 2023, and the longest by a Celtic player since Anthony Stokes scored in seven in succession from April to August 2014.

Hearts have sold more than 16,000 tickets for next month's Scottish Cup semi-final against Aberdeen and are expected to request more once their initial allocation of 19,000 is snapped up. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Read the rest of Thursday's Scottish gossip.