Romanov dismisses 'incognito' claim as joke but refuses to name new director

ROMAN Romanov claimed yesterday he had been joking when he told a meeting of Hearts shareholders that the club already had a director of football who was "working incognito". He then contradicted himself, however, by admitting that the club had agreed to appoint an unnamed individual to the post.

The man in question has apparently persuaded Romanov and his colleagues that, in order to prevent more disruption at the club, he should not be formally appointed until the close season. The playing staff took some time to adjust to the arrival of Graham Rix as first-team coach after the loss of George Burley as manager.

It was at a November meeting of the Hearts Shareholders' Association that Romanov, the chairman and acting chief executive, said the vacant director of football post had in fact been filled. "We already have a director of football working incognito and hopefully we'll announce him soon," he stated. "He is helping us at the moment and is well known in UK football."

These remarks, which were reported in The Scotsman and on a Hearts chatroom, had been "misinterpreted", Romanov said at yesterday's annual general meeting. "I said we had an incognito director of football, which was a joke," he stated. "Now I try not to make too many jokes".

Hearts have planned to appoint a director of football since they parted company with Burley back in October. Now it appears that Rix and his assistant coaches will have to soldier on without a director of football until the summer.

"A director of football will be appointed," Romanov continued. "But the person himself said it may not be appropriate at this moment to jump in and add more disruption. Appointing him when the season is over would be more appropriate."

Taken from the Scotsman