Pressley sets his sights on Old Firm

MARK BONTHRONE

STEVEN PRESSLEY today admitted Hearts could now only throw away third spot in the SPL and urged his team-mates to set their sights higher in the future by looking to cut the gap on the Old Firm.

The Jambos captain helped his side to a crucial 2-0 victory over Dundee United at Tannadice at the weekend to leave the Jambos on course to claim third place with just three games remaining.

The Tynecastle side, who are already guaranteed European football next term due to Dunfermline’s progression to the Scottish Cup final, are six points clear of the Fifers but have a vastly superior goal difference.

The teams meet in the Capital on Saturday and a draw would effectively see Craig Levein’s men end the season ahead of the Pars given their goal difference.

And while Pressley is keen to be crowned the best of the rest for a second successive season he has urged his side to set their sights even higher.

"I think beating Dundee United has given us a great opportunity to go on and get that third spot and it’s fair to say that if we didn’t manage now we would all be extremely disappointed," he said.

"We felt this was a really important game for us and winning it would give us a good chance of cementing third place so we are delighted to have won. We have managed to show a level of consistency that other teams haven’t been able to achieve this season and next season we would love to get closer to the Old Firm and again show the same level of consistency

"We want to make sure that we stay ahead of everyone else but I think we now have to look to close the gap on the Old Firm as well.

"A lot of people have said they want to challenge us for that third spot and it’s a task there for them to attempt but we want to improve not slip back."

Meanwhile, Hearts were today expected to announce that they intend to delay a move to Murrayfield by a year and will play their domestic games at Tynecastle and UEFA Cup ties at the home of Scottish rugby next season.

Taken from the Scotsman