I WANTED TO BULLET RIX WEEKS AGO

VLADIMIR ROMANOV has revealed he wanted to sack Graham Rix weeks ago - but player power kept him at Hearts.

Romanov axed his third manager in less than a year yesterday when Rix and director of football Jim Duffy followed John Robertson and George Burley out the door at Tynecastle. Lithuanian Valdas Ivanauskas has taken charge of team affairs until the end of the season as Jambos owner Romanov gambles with his club's Champions League and Scottish Cup dreams.

Hearts are six points clear of Rangers with eight games left in the SPL and face Hibs in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup a week on Sunday.

The departure of Rix after only four months and 19 games in charge has plunged the Jambos into even more turmoil but Romanov insisted he had to act.

He said: "I don't think the team are surprised because the question of Rix's future has been hanging in the air. I even suggested we say goodbye to him as head coach earlier but the guys in the team insisted on letting him stay and I followed their wishes.

"I did not go against the opinion of the team because if we make decisions we should make them together and then everyone knows the direction in which we are heading.

"However, I feel I've made a mistake by not acting sooner as we've lost 24 points in the league since he took charge, as well as precious time. If we were to keep going with Rix we were also in danger of losing second position in the league.

"As a result, I did not see any point of staying with him any longer.

"It's a difficult decision for me and the club but I don't think Rix is surprised either as he knew he wasn't doing very well.

"He tried to stay until the end of his contract and the club and I tried to wait and help him do better but somehow all our efforts failed."

Rix won nine games during his time in charge, drew six and lost four but Romanov is adamant there should have been more victories.

Bizarrely, he even criticised Rix's January signing policy when 11 new faces arrived at the club but only two of which, Lee Johnson and Chris Hackett, were acknowledged as direct recommendations of the coach.

Romanov added: "We're grateful to Rix and Duffy but the fact we didn't win almost every game was too serious to ignore. I did not see progress. I only saw that he brought in some players during the January transfer window who did not do any good for the team."

Hearts fans have been left confused at the timing of Rix's departure at such a crucial stage of the season but Romanov has urged them to trust his judgment.

He added: "I want to stress again to our fans we're only at the beginning of building this club.

"It's very difficult to find the right coach who will immediately find his own style and is able to devote himself to the team.

"It's a great pity we've lost 24 points in the league under Rix because that is a lot - and it is a strong lesson for all of us to learn.

"But, again, I say to the fans not to be worried or upset. I will do my best for the team and the club and I promise we're at the beginning of a very successful era for H earts."

Taken from the Daily Record