Hearts aim to above standard

JIM REYNOLDS

21 Oct 1992

HEARTS will go all out tonight to prove that first impressions are not always best, or even accurate, when they face Standard Liege in the first leg of their UEFA Cup-tie at Tynecastle.

A delegation from the Belgian side, led by assistant coach Leon Semmeling, watched Joe Jordan's men beat Dundee United last weekend and announced that they were not impressed by what they had seen.

The attitude was different yesterday when Standard Liege arrived in Edinburgh, and manager Arie Haan, the former Dutch internationalist, tried to take the heat out of the situation.

He made all the right noises for a football guest visiting another country, but too late.

The Hearts players already had noted Semmeling's comments, and they are determined to prove him wrong.

Yesterday, however, Jordan sounded a word of warning to his men and asked them to look back to the first-round match against Slavia Prague.

On that occasion, the Tynecastle men produced a glorious finish to the home second leg to win 4-2, but it was too close for comfort.

Said Jordan: "Other teams might have finished us off, because we showed a lack of concentration and a bit of naivety in defence.

We have to learn from the negative points of that night, and be a bit more professional this time."

Hearts also would do well to remember their experience against Bologna a couple of seasons back when they were leading 3-0 in a first leg at Tynecastle and lost a goal to a set piece.

In the return in Italy, they lost 3-0, and the tie overall.

Standard are back in Europe for the first time in six years and are gradually regaining the respect they commanded in the not-too-distant past.

They have quality players, and although they do tend to lose goals -- they appear to be vulnerable to the high ball -- they have a lot of faith in men such as Belgian international striker Marc Wilmots and experienced midfield man Patrick Vervoot.

Haan's side are joint top of the Belgian league with Anderlecht and have lost only once this season.

On the injury front, it looks as if only Alan McLaren is giving any great cause for concern, having been out of action since the Slavia match at Tynecastle, and there is a doubt surrounding Ally Mauchlen.

Tosh McKinlay, however, trained again yesterday and looks to have made a good recovery from a thigh strain.

With the proper approach, Hearts can gain a result which will give them a fighting chance in the second leg.

Taken from the Herald