Romanov risks big plan

AS THE owner of Hearts, as the man who has ploughed millions into the club and has a long-term plan to transform it into one of the most successful in Europe, Vladimir Romanov has a right to take an active interest in every section of the business. In that respect, the term "interference" - invariably used by his detractors whenever he is said to have expressed an opinion on a Hearts player - is an inaccurate one.

Only the most otherworldly of philanthropists, in football or in any other business, would invest his time and money in a company then refrain from any further involvement. As Romanov's beleaguered Scottish spokesman never tires of reminding anyone, even a coach as revered as Jose Mourinho has to have regular discussions with his employer, Roman Abramovich, about his team selections and tactics.

But there is a crucial difference between the situation at Chelsea and that at Hearts, and one which highlights the problem currently facing the Scottish club. By all accounts, Abramovich and Mourinho meet regularly and engage in calm, rational discussions. Romanov, by contrast, turns up for a short time, blusters into Riccarton or Tynecastle, and then breezes out again.

It is this random nature of his interventions which is so unsettling to the playing and coaching staff, and which threatens to undermine the very project on which he has spent so much time and money.

If Rix and Romanov met every week after the coach had pencilled in a team, and if after calm and informed discussion they agreed to make a change or two, the club would probably not suffer.

Certainly, the coach, having been unemployed for a time before being offered the chance to revive his career in Edinburgh, could have no complaints about such an arrangement.

At the moment, though, what Rix has to endure is a series of unpredictable onslaughts. Romanov may think of himself as a perpetual troubleshooter, forever touring Europe to oversee his various business interests, but there are many at Hearts who now see him instead as a perpetual trouble-causer. They hear him talk of his grandiose schemes for the club, then see him take petty and capricious actions which lessen the club's credibility.

Like many a successful businessman, Romanov finds it very difficult to delegate, and even more difficult to trust others. In that sense, he is reminiscent of his predecessor at Tynecastle. Chris Robinson was another who, having got so far by backing his own judgment, found it hard to accept that sometimes other people had a better vantage point.

Of course, as the Hearts director Sergejus Fedotovas once explained to a meeting of supporters, the crucial difference between the old and new regimes is that, whereas Robinson had only a survival plan, the Lithuanians who are now in charge at Tynecastle have a development plan. They believe that they can tap into a massive latent support for the club by investing heavily in the playing side, and they argue, with a lot of reason, that a city as affluent as Edinburgh could and should have a bigger, more successful football club than it can currently boast.

But the process of turning that passive fan base into an active support depends on having a winning team on the field. And, to put it mildly, there is nothing to indicate that Romanov's interventions have helped in that respect at all.

It has been suggested, only partly in jest, that if Romanov has indeed been picking the team, he has been making a decent fist of it. Such a suggestion, however, is wide of the mark in two respects. First, it is Rix who has made several risky selections recently and been vindicated, as was the case when he went with a 4-5-1 at home to Hibs and Hearts won 4-1.

Second, what is known of Romanov's opinions of Hearts players shows him up as at best an unreliable judge of what makes a good footballer. Julien Brellier, for instance, is a cult hero at Tynecastle, venerated by the fans for his tough tackling and high work rate. Romanov, however, has consistently bad-mouthed the Frenchman, who was signed by Rix's predecessor, George Burley.

Samuel Camazzola, signed by Romanov against Burley's inclination, was a regular in right midfield in the early months of the season, proving himself to be a valuable and disciplined member of the side. The Brazilian has yet to win his place back after being out with an injury, but did enough when he was in the team to justify his recruitment.

Ibrahim Tall, on the other hand, has done nothing to show why Romanov was so keen to sign him. Successive managers have decided that Tall is simply not good enough to merit a place in the squad, and it was telling a couple of weeks ago that, when Rix announced the inclusion of the defender in the squad, he quickly followed that up by admitting everyone who was fit was in the squad.

So Romanov's record is patchy, and that is purely when it comes down to a disinterested assessment of a player's ability. Once you take his various biases and predilections into account, he becomes even less reliable a judge.

The current crisis over team selection, for instance, appears to have been precipitated by a disagreement with Andy Webster's agent. Negotiations over a new contract for the Scotland centre-back collapsed - no surprise given Romanov regards agents as little more than Satan's helper elves - and the next thing the players knew Rix had been told to drop Webster from the side to face Dundee United on Tuesday night.

Webster still has well over a year to go on his contract, so there was no need for the talks to become so hostile so quickly. Had Romanov been a chief executive answerable to the board, he might not have acted so self-indulgently. But apparently he is answerable to no-one except himself.

In the end, of course, that may be what saves the Hearts project from going completely off the rails. Once Romanov realises that his actions are harming his own reputation as well as that of his club, he may change tack.

Just don't expect it to happen any time soon.

Taken from the Scotsman