Burley denies Romanov rift

STEPHEN HALLIDAY

GEORGE Burley will give youth its head at Hampden tonight as he seeks to protect a Hearts first-team squad he insists is still short of the strength necessary to achieve his prime target this season of securing a place in Europe.

The Hearts manager, who responded to further rumours of disharmony in his relationship with the club's major shareholder Vladimir Romanov by claiming "it is working very well", revealed that bids have been lodged for two unnamed players he hopes to add to his first-team pool before the current transfer window closes at the end of the month.

Burley, clearly determined that Hearts' magnificent start to the Bank of Scotland Premierleague campaign does not persuade Romanov that no further reinforcements are required, will rest four of his signings for tonight's CIS Insurance Cup second-round tie against Queen's Park to ensure they are available for Motherwell's league visit to Tynecastle on Saturday.

Rudi Skacel, Julien Brellier, Roman Bednar and Takis Fyssas, who all sustained minor bumps and bruises during the 2-0 win over Aberdeen at the weekend which took Hearts three points clear at the top of the SPL, will be excused duty against the Third Division amateurs as Burley gives youngsters such as Lee Wallace and Christophe Berra an opportunity to shine.

"We won't be risking anyone in this game," said Burley, "and certainly not the four lads who picked up knocks on Saturday. We have only got a 20-man first-team squad at the moment and we would be in trouble if we picked up more serious injuries or suspensions. That's why I want to bring in two more players before the deadline."

Zdenek Grygera, the Czech right-back currently at Ajax, is understood to be one of the players Burley is currently trying to sign, and he added: "I have spoken to Mr Romanov and he is aware of the players I want. We have made offers for a couple and we will see what happens.

"It has worked very well between Mr Romanov and myself so far, although it is a different type of relationship than I have been used to as a manager. He is the owner who is dipping his hand into his pocket and we do bounce different players off each other who are potential targets, but at the end of the day it has to be my decision."

Burley insists his decision to leave out so many of his high-profile players tonight should not be viewed as either complacency or a lack of respect for Queen's Park and was enthusiastic about the quality of the youngsters he is able to call upon.

Lee Wallace, the 18-year-old who impressed last season when pressed into action at left-back by previous Hearts boss John Robertson, has particularly caught the eye of Burley, who believes a call-up to the Scotland Under-21 squad is long overdue.

"I rate Lee very highly," said Burley, "and I am very surprised he is not a part of the Scotland Under-21 set-up. Both he and Christophe Berra deserve their opportunity and I've got no fears about either of them. We are certainly taking the game seriously and we want to keep on winning because it is habit-forming. We had Queen's Park watched on Saturday and while I'm sure they were disappointed to lose at home to Berwick Rangers, I know Billy Stark well and he is a very good coach who will have them ready for this game."

Michal Pospisil, the Czech striker who scored his first goal for Hearts on Saturday, will be handed his maiden starting appearance for the club tonight as part of Burley's reshuffle.

"Michal is still not 100 per cent match fit and he needs to get games under his belt," said Burley. "He did very well when he came on against Aberdeen and hopefully he can continue that over a full 90 minutes."

Jamie McAllister is another likely starter, with Burley confirming he has blocked any move out of Tynecastle for the Scottish international full-back who is believed to have been the subject of enquiries from Dundee United and Dunfermline. "I have spoken to Jamie about the situation," said Burley, "and made it clear that I want to keep him here along with the rest of the Scottish players. As I say, we don't have a big squad and it's arrivals I'm looking for, not departures."

Taken from the Scotsman