HEARTS BEWARE - McCANN

By Ronnie Esplin, PA Sport, Mostar

Hearts winger Neil McCann has warned against complacency ahead of the Champions League second qualifying round, second leg, against Siroki Brijeg in Bosnia.

The Edinburgh club have a seemingly unassailable three-goal lead from the first leg at Murrayfield to put themselves in pole position for a final qualifier against AEK Athens later this month.

But, despite the odds being stacked against the Bosnia champions, the 31-year-old insists nothing can be taken for granted on foreign soil.

McCann said: "It was nice to see the draw and the possibility of who we might face in the third qualifier, but we are all professional enough to make sure we get the right result in this game and then we can look forward to the next match.

"In every game you have to guard against complacency.

"But, obviously, when you are going abroad to different countries where they play different styles of football, then you have to be on your guard all the time.

"You cannot be blasé and think the job is already done.

"We are going to give Siroki every respect, because they are the champions of their country.

"And, if we go over there thinking the tie is already over, then we could shoot ourselves in the foot.

"We have watched a couple of videos of them and they look quite useful.

"So it is important we close the game out and try and score a goal.

"If we score early on, then that should make it more comfortable for us."

The Hearts defence remains the most settled part of the team with the emergence of young centre-back Christophe Berra in place of Andy Webster.

The former Rangers and Southampton player takes comfort from the consistency the Tynecastle rearguard has shown in recent times.

McCann said: "One thing we do have is immense confidence in the boys at the back.

"They were fantastic last year and have started off the same way this season. So we know they will stand strong at the back.

"But we know we are in a good position and, if we get a goal, it will give us a great chance to go through into the next round."

Taken from sportinglife.com