Heart of Midlothian

Craig Gordon has urged Scotland to summon another "big performance" against Greece at Hampden on Sunday to ensure Nations League top-tier survival.

The 42-year-old Hearts goalkeeper, who marked his 80th cap with a clean sheet in the narrow first-leg win in Athens, knows the play-off tie is "by no means finished".

"It is still a difficult game. The tie is in the balance," said Gordon. "You could see the quality that they have, so still another big performance needed.

"This is by no means finished, it will still be a very difficult one going into the second leg. It was a big win. We had to work really hard, especially in the second half to hang on to it.

"But great determination was shown by everybody to grind out that second half and stay in the lead.

"The guys in front were chucking themselves in front of things, it was quite desperate at times. Sometimes you have to do that to keep the ball out your net and I thought we did it very well in the second half."

Gordon was impressed by 17-year-old Greek debutant Konstantinos Karetsas - who has switched allegiance from Belgium and came off the bench in the second half - and says the Scots will have to cope better with the youngster at Hampden.

"He looked fantastic. Someone we will need to look out for in the second leg," he added.

"A great young player but it is about what we do on Sunday to try to nullify that and create more chances of our own."

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The final episode of Romanov: Czar of Hearts will induce both laughter and tears, according to BBC Scotland presenter and Hearts supporter Martin Geissler.

Former owner owner Vladimir Romanov sat down with Geissler for a feature interview, which lifts the lid on his tumultuous tenure at Tynecastle and airs on Saturday on BBC Sounds.

The surprise episode was revealed last week and Geissler says some of Romanov's revelations are "downright crazy".

"We didn't know we were going to do it, we didn't know where he was," Geissler explained. "James the producer got a lead, pursued it with vigour and it turned out Romanov was very happy to speak.

"He's got a lot of things to say, all of which you will hear on Saturday. Some stuff we haven't been able to broadcast, some stuff we had to invite people back for a right of reply, and some stuff is downright crazy.

"Some stuff will make you laugh, some stuff if you're a Hearts supporter will make you cry."

Geissler teased a big reveal in the final podcast episode and insists he can now look back fondly at the Romanov era despite the chaotic way it ended, with the club entering administration.

"I don't know how much I know now that I didn't know then, because you lose some memory over 20 years," Geissler said. "There are some revelations still to come, there's one in particular that comes out in the bonus episode.

"Hearts wouldn't be here without Vladimir Romanov, and then he took it on a decade-long rollercoaster and left it where he found it. What a ride that was.

"There's a lot of me, looking back on the whole thing, that can't help but think 'good old Vlad'. It was bonkers, but it was great fun."

With just eight Premiership games left, we're down to the business end of the season.

Player reputations have been enhanced - or sullied - with their performances throughout the campaign.

As thoughts begin to turn to end-of-term awards, we want to know your Hearts player of the season so far - and the biggest flop.

Share your views

It is the podcast series everyone is talking about.

And it comes to a blockbuster end this weekend with an exclusive interview with the man himself - Vladimir Romanov.

Watch the sneak peek above before the bonus episode of Romanov: Czar of Hearts lands on Saturday at 00:01 GMT.

The special powers that Police Scotland officers were handed in a bid to prevent crowd trouble breaking out at the Edinburgh derby match at the start of this month and the Old Firm game last weekend are set to remain in use for the foreseeable future. (The Herald), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Greg Playfair
Fan writer

It's fair to say 2025 has so far been a success for all those of a maroon persuasion with just two defeats in 13 games as we hit the first international break.

Cast your mind back to the Dingwall debacle - those two late goals at the end of December - and many of us felt Hearts were heading in one direction. And it wasn't up.

Given we now have at least one trip to Hampden to look forward to, and it is within our gift to finish the season in a European spot, it's quite the turnaround from the early narrative of our league campaign.

Neil Critchley has made a telling impact during his time in charge and if you look at the last 10 league games alone, we are joint top of the form table with Celtic and Rangers - 22 points gained from a possible 30.

Given that Aberdeen and Dundee United have only picked up nine and seven points respectively in that time, the aim should be to catch them and be at least fourth come the final whistle in May.

The fact Critchley has hauled us up to this position means he deserves enormous credit. With the help of Jamestown Analytics, he's really put his own stamp on the team with the January additions of Elton Kabangu, Michael Steinwender and Sander Kartum. Each have made vital contributions.

Critchley has been able to get consistency from players like Beni Baningime and Cammy Devlin, as well as building upon the foundations of promise from James Penrice and Blair Spittal.

Add in the trust he has placed in younger players such as new Scotland squad member James Wilson, Musa Drammeh and Adam Forrester and he's been repaid by all players with results on the pitch.

While 18-year-old Wilson is the embodiment of everything going right on the pitch for Hearts, off the field the club have scored an own goal this week.

Hearts are charging £48 per person for a bus from Tynecastle to Hampden for next month's Scottish Cup semi-final, in addition to a £30 match ticket.

All before season ticket holders get a chance to secure their seats. The club have seriously misjudged this.

Watch as Sportscene pundit and former Hearts boss Steven Naismith analyses the 2-0 win over Ross County. (Available to UK users only)

Motherwell midfielder Miller and fellow 18-year-old James Wilson, the Hearts forward, are not merely in the Scotland squad to make up the numbers, says assistant coach John Carver. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish gossip

Beni Baningime (Hearts): The heartbeat of Neil Critchley's midfield. An intelligent player who always keeps it steadily ticking over.

Veteran Heart of Midlothian goalkeeper Craig Gordon "can totally see" why "all-round forward" James Wilson is already in the Scotland squad. (The Scotsman)

Read the rest of Monday's gossip.

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Craig Gordon says Hearts put "added pressure" on Saturday's victory over Ross County.

Neil Critchley's side moved into the top six with a 2-0 win over Don Cowie's men and with results elsewhere, moved them one point clear of Motherwell in seventh.

"We felt we had to win," the Hearts goalkeeper said.

"There's a lot of added pressure on that but we really felt we needed three points to get ourselves in there.

"There's not many games to go now so we need to keep winning and keep getting points on the board because I think all the other teams around there will do that as well

"I think we're playing better. We're playing better football. Probably a bit more confidence in the boys, especially going forward.

"I think that was our problem at the start of the season. I think we struggled to score many goals, but we created good chances and managed to put two of them away."

Watch all the highlights from Hearts' 2-0 win over Ross County in the Scottish Premiership.

Available to UK users only.

Hearts fans, we asked for your views on Saturday's victory over Ross County.

Here's what some of you had to say:

Alan: Hearts need to be prepared to win any way they can at times, it cannot always be pretty. We're moving right way under Neil Critchley, go easy on him and the team.

Anon: A good result against a team who have caused every team they play against problems. Hearts never played well but the win was all that mattered at this stage and it builds confidence within the squad. Naming players you don't like does absolutely no good, the manager and coaches select them all on merit so let's trust their choices.

Steve: Grateful for three points but another average display. Lawrence Shankland playing deep at the front makes no sense, he's short of pace. If he's selected he has to play up front and score goals. We desperately need a right-back, and pace in a static midfield. Not feeling confident about staying in the top six, which should be a given with the squad.

Peter: Such an important win. We can now afford to lose to Celtic and then win against Dundee United and Motherwell to remain in the top six. Not that we should settle for a loss at Parkhead, we have won there before.

Brian: A good result is better than a poor performance that's exactly what we got against a plucky Ross County. Not losing a goal is always a bonus. The Motherwell game just before the break could be massive in our quest for top six.

Chris: The work rate and skill of Beni Baningime cannot be understated, he is literally everywhere and is the main reason we won today. We badly need some of our strong defenders back. I thought the distribution, shape and communication of our back line was hard to watch at times and with the likes of Frankie Kent, Stephen Kingsley and Craig Halkett back we should secure top six.

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• Hearts have beaten Ross County for the first time in the Premiership since 30 September 2023, a run of four games without a win.

• Hearts have scored in their last seven games in the Premiership, scoring 18 goals in that run, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of seven games from 21 September 2024 to 2 November 2024.

• Elton Kabangu has scored six goals in the Premiership this season (one in this game), more than any other Hearts player.

• Jorge Grant has contributed to goals in his last three games in the Premiership (two goals, one assist).

• Ross County have failed to score in 12 of their 30 games, more often than any other team in the Premiership this season.

• Ross County have conceded nine goals to opposition substitutes in the Premiership this season, only Dundee (13) and St. Johnstone (10) have conceded more.

• Ross County have conceded 17 goals in the last 15 minutes of the second half, more than any other team in the Premiership this season.

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Hearts eased to a 2-0 Premiership victory over Ross County to continue their push for top six.

You can watch the highlights of the game over on BBC iPlayer or via this link.

"My Name is Vladimir Romanov, I want to tell you my story."

Those are the surprise words that will close this week's episode of Romanov: Czar of Hearts.

Last reported in the UK to be penniless and living aboard the rusted old hull of the K19 submarine, we have tracked down the Czar and interviewed him about his time at Hearts and his life.

This special bonus episode will be released on Saturday March 22nd.

Hearts moved into the Scottish Premiership's top six after beating Ross County to dent the visitors' own hopes of finishing in the upper half of the division.

What did you make of the game, Hearts fans? A deserved win?

Who impressed you? And how confident are you of a top six finish?

Let us know your thoughts here., external

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Hearts' head coach Neil Critchley: "It's only natural [to get nervy] when it's 1-0 and the game is in the balance. We were in control for long periods, although Ross County made it difficult for us with basically 11 men behind the ball. It's not easy to break down, and they had a threat on the counter attack.

"It's important to score first and we did score a brilliant team goal, worked through the middle of the pitch. I don't think Craig has had a save to make in the whole game.

"The subs made a difference as well, and that's what we want - a competitive squad, all fighting for places.

"You need to have a balance between patience and making sure you're putting the opposition under threat. That's not always easy, especially when you're a team searching for identity.

"We're reliant on relationships on the pitch and a bit of cohesion, which takes time. We're working towards that. The first goal settled people down.

"It was something said at half-time - when was the last clean sheet? We've got to be hard to beat. We've not been conceding loads, but it's a good habit to have, clean sheets."

Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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At this time of the year, results are more important than performances and this was certainly the case for Hearts.

Six months ago, there is every chance they would have dropped points in a game like this. but Neil Critchley is slowly but surely finding the key to winning matches.

This was only the second time Hearts have kept a clean sheet at home this year and, with key personnel missing at the back, this will have done their confidence the world of good.

They now have a break before heading to Celtic Park in two weeks time and are in the top six - they will want to stay there for the season run-in.

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Beni Baningime. The midfielder looks back to his best, controlling the midfield from the base of the diamond formation.

He set up the first with a brilliant defence-splitting pass, but also did the dirty work - taking on more duels than any other Hearts' player.

He also won more tackles than any of his teammates, and drew three fouls himself.

Hearts are in administration and for the second time in less than 10 years they are in desperate need for a saviour.

At the same time Vladimir Romanov is facing his own problems as the Lithuanian authorities close in on him and his financial irregularities.

Can the club be saved and what does the future hold for The Czar of Hearts?

Episode nine of Romanov: Czar of Hearts is now available on BBC Sounds - listen and subscribe here.

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Hearts boss Neil Critchley will make a late call on whether to include Jamie McCart and Cammy Devlin following their recent injury issues.

Aidan Denholm, Craig Halkett, Stephen Kingsley (all hamstring) and Frankie Kent (quad) are still out.

Ross County are set to be without Michee Efete (knee), Ryan Leak (Achilles), Alex Samuel (thigh) and Will Nightingale (knee).