Hartley in good heart for Europe

MOIRA GORDON

A YEAR ago, against Bordeaux, Paul Hartley departed UEFA Cup competition bloodied and bruised. A blow to the mouth necessitated five stitches, meaning some of his wounds were visible, but it was the mental scarring suffered by everyone at the club which has taken longer to heal and has focused minds as they travel to Portugal for the second leg of their tie against Braga this week.

As the celebrations got underway in the home dressing room at Murrayfield last Thursday, manager Craig Levein was quick to stall the partying, mindful of the fact they had faltered despite their first-leg lead last year. But while that point was taken on board by the squad, leading 3-1 and looking eminently capable of completing the task, Hartley and Co are determined not to get kicked in the teeth for the second year running.

"I think [that experience, against Bordeaux] has been massive," says the 27-year-old midfielder, who is finding his best form. "We had a great performance and result away from home and I don’t think we took it for granted because we knew they were a quality team. We thought we could have got a result coming back to Tynecastle but on the night they were just too good for us and hopefully that will stand us in good stead."

Braga are no Bordeaux, though. Decent technically, and dangerous on the counter-attack, the Portuguese side were taken aback by the stiffness of the competition presented by their Scottish opponents. There’s a twinkle in Hartley’s eye as he is reminded of that. "Yeah," he smiles, "I think they were very surprised. They spoke before the game about how they were technically better than us, which is fair enough, but the way we played on the night surprised a few people. I thought we played very good football, attacking football and we got three good goals which was pleasing."

A lot will depend on Hartley turning in another of the sterling performances which have seen him emerge from the shadows of the squad to become a fans hero and, more importantly, a favourite with the manager. As a former Hibs player, his task was tougher than most when he first arrived and he admits it has taken him some time to settle and find the levels of fitness needed to become a 90-minute box-to-box midfielder. The fact he has managed it has won over the supporters and delighted his boss, who thought he was buying a reliable Ford Focus only to remove the dust sheet and find a Ferrari lurking beneath.

"He’s gone from a level down here," says Levein, his hand resting just above the desk, "up to what I consider to be our most consistent player," the hand moving up to head height, "and that’s in front of Steven Pressley, which tells you something. The improvement in him since he arrived has been incredible. When players start improving, whatever age, there’s no telling when they stop and all we need to do now is encourage him. Honestly, he’s wonderful. He’s doing everything. He’s winning the ball back, he’s making goals, he’s scoring goals and he’s working back. He’s tackling, he’s heading. He’s the complete player at this minute."

Which is all the more impressive given his indifferent start. A mental toughness which belies what is still a fairly diminutive frame, Levein believes the player is simply indulging in the opportunity to prove himself.

"He’s been a bit of a nomad if you look at his career, and I think he needed to find somewhere where he’s wanted and comfortable and feels happy. I believe he’s found that here. He’s the one who wanted to play centre midfield. I signed him as an option to play wide right but he had to understand ‘okay, if you want to play centre midfield, this is what I see that job entailing’ and what he has done is embrace that."

At a time when injury seems to be ripping through the club’s striking options like a joyrider with a police car on their tail, with Mark de Vries added to the list, Hartley’s understanding of what’s needed has extended to upping his contribution to the scoring, netting against Braga, and adding a brace against Kilmarnock midweek to ensure progress in the CIS Cup. It is form which has now seen him touted for Scotland.

As he hangs about waiting for the press conference to start, every second person he encounters teases him about the multiplying reports linking him with the national side, every phone that rings is allegedly Berti Vogts calling and while the tone is jocular, the sentiments behind the comments are sincere.

But first things first. Pitting his skills against the best is undoubtedly a dream, but for the here and now Hartley is concentrating on doing that at UEFA Cup rather than international level. He does, however, allow himself to think about the draw for the next round and who Hearts could draw if they make that group stage. A guy who admits he immerses himself in the televised European fare, he is already dreaming of tussles with the world’s best.

"It’s going to be massive for the club as a whole but, as a player, I’ll be looking forward to the draw if we get through. You never know, we might get one of the top Italian or English clubs and that’s why you play football, to play against the best teams and to see how good you are against them."

Such a thought would surely never have crossed this player’s mind 18 months ago. Low on confidence and with a game which wasn’t quite clicking, he might have liked the idea but balked at the reality. Not now. Now he is ready, willing and able to face up to anything the UEFA Cup can throw at him. Including the play-acting which is part and parcel of football life on the continent.

"You’ve got to have a strong referee and in the first game [against Braga] he was outstanding. Hopefully we will get another one across there because it’s difficult not to react. They tried to waste time here but maybe they won’t do it as much because they know they need to get a result this time."

But they will go canny. Cagey is a word Levein uses frequently when talking tactics for the up-coming away leg. He knows he can go there, lose 1-0 and still progress. Last year he was caught between two stools, unsure whether to protect the first-leg lead or go out to extend it. Regrets? He has a few but hindsight he reminds us is a wonderful thing.

"If you look at the games we've played with Craig Gordon in goals, Robbie Neilson, Steven Pressley, Andy Webster and Alan Maybury, we’ve hardly lost a goal and that’s fairly good. If you look at our two away games in Europe last season, we’ve yet to lose a goal, so I’m fairly confident that we’ve got a good defensive team and I’m fairly sure that we can organise them well enough not to leak goals. They’ve got quality players and if somebody does something out the ordinary then we might lose a goal, but if we start cagey then I can do something about it."

To back up those words, Levein knows he and his squad have to dig deep, but when he does that he always seems to unearth gems. Hartley is the latest to find his sparkle. And the timing could hardly be better.

Taken from the Scotsman