Anderton: Scala is top class

HEARTS chief executive Phil Anderton today described former Parma boss Nevio Scala as an "outstanding" candidate for the manager's job at the club.

It is the clearest indication yet that the 57-year-old Italian is the front-runner to fill the Tynecastle hot-seat.

With Preston now confident they will retain the services of manager Billy Davies, it appears to be a two-horse race between Scala and former Ipswich Town and Derby County boss George Burley.

The former Scotland internationalist turned down the opportunity to manage Millwall yesterday.

German legend Lothar Matthaus, who won 150 caps for his country, meanwhile, appears to be out of the running altogether. And while Burley has an excellent pedigree south of the border it looks as though Scala's reputation all over Europe has given him the edge.

"A manager like Scala has an outstanding track record in Italy and he's also been in Turkey and the Ukraine and won cups and leagues," said Anderton.

"Someone like that would be an architect of success for the club."

Burley, however, is still in the frame, with former SRU man Anderton admitting he too, has an impressive managerial history

"We have met with a number of top quality managers and we are waiting to try and conclude on one of these managers. There have been a lot of names put forward by the media and a lot of them have been wrong. But those two individuals (Scala and Burley) clearly have a proven track record and fit the bill very nicely for what we are looking for.

"Burley took Ipswich up to the Premiership and got them into fifth place and into the UEFA Cup so you are looking at quality people here."

With pre-season training just a couple of weeks away the need to appoint a new boss is pressing and Anderton has revealed the criteria on which the club will base their decision.

"Money will be a consideration and there is also the desire of the manager, as we may be in a position where we have a number of managers who want to come to the club which would give us a choice to make. Or it could be that we are turned down.

"We are not going to rush it," he told www.heartsfc.co.uk.

"Just because we have a deadline of June 27 for season tickets doesn't mean we have to get a manager in place by that date. It would be ideal but we are not going to be driven by that."

Anderton also revealed that the club have agreed a new shirt sponsor - to be revealed next week.

Taken from the Scotsman