WE'LL SHOW GREEKS THAT WE'RE NOT GEEKS

GREEK defender Takis Fyssas is ready to take his anger out on the countrymen who have labelled Hearts European no-hopers.

Fyssas is used to being feted in Athens as a former Panathinaikos star and member of the national team that stunned football two years ago by winning the European Championship.

But he arrived in his nation's capital yesterday afternoon as part of a squad scorned and dismissed after the first leg of their Champions League qualifier against AEK Athens.

The Jambos lost 2-1 at Murrayfield and must climb the equivalent of every one of the seven hills on which Athens is constructed if they are to make it to the group stage.

It is a task that will prove beyond the SPL runners-up if they repeat their poor performance of a fortnight ago.

There was a degree of misfortune at losing two late goals to the Greeks but no one could argue the victory by Lorenzo Serra Ferrer's side was anything other than justified.

Certainly, Fyssas had no complaints about the score but admitted he is being motivated for the return in part by the taunts still ringing in his ears from back home.

Fyssas said: "The feeling in Greece is that Hearts are not such a good team and I was very disappointed and angry with the critics because they said some bad things about our team.

"They couldn't understand we went into the last game with big injury problems and minus some important players, such as Julien Brellier and Deividas Cesnauskas.

"I was waiting for the people who understand football to acknowledge this but they did not and I now want to show them Hearts are a very good team.

"If we pass into the Champions League I will be a happy man but even if we don't I will still be happy as we have plenty of targets still to achieve and I don't want to let anyone down.

"I knew one day I would return to my country to play a Greek team in Europe and I've been waiting for this moment for a long time. However, now it is happening, it does not feel so important to me, as it's much more vital for my team.

"We know we did not come away with such a good result in our first leg but in football you can't afford to be negative and I always believe in myself and my team.

"We can show against AEK that we are not such an easy team to play against."

Hearts must go where no Scottish team has ever ventured before by winning a competitive game in Greece.

The odds are further stacked against Hearts as they have lost the home leg in Europe four times in the past and, on each occasion, failed to progress - against Inter Milan, Standard Liege, Benfica and Real Mallorca.

But 32-year-old Fyssas admits he knew the Jambos were up against it long before now - and not just because he has never defeated AEK on their own turf.

The former Benfica star has also hinted he knows from personal experience his current club lack the strength in depth to compete on two fronts unless they bolster their squad before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.

Fyssas said: "AEK's old stadium, the Nikos Goumas, has now been demolished and the team moved into the Olympic Stadium last year.

"It was very difficult to play at their old ground and, in all my time at Panathinaikos, I never won there and knew only draws and defeats.

"I know the Olympic Stadium well, as it was my home ground with Panathinaikos for three years and it generates a great atmosphere.

"It's great for players to perform there but also because the pitch is not so close to the fans. In some ways, it's like comparing Murrayfield to Tynecastle.

"It's not going to be easy for Hearts but I knew this even before we started the season.

"We have a responsibility to our fans, the club president and our coaches. We know our targets and everyone expects more after last season but, this time, we have so many games to play.

"We are not used to playing on Wednesday-Saturday-Wednesday. I know this also from my time at Panathinaikos because we played well in the Champions League yet still lost easy points in our domestic games.

"So, please, I tell everyone, have patience and never feel we are not giving everything to the club."

Hearts must show more tonight than they did at Ibrox on Saturday, when they started brightly against Rangers only to fade and lose 2-0.

It's a sign of frustration that even Fyssas, one of the most mild-mannered guys in the game, lost his rag and picked up a caution for pushing a ball boy who refused to return the ball quickly to him on the Govan stand side of the ground.

Fyssas admits he was in the wrong and deserved his booking from referee Kenny Clark but insists nothing more sinister should be taken from his actions.

He said: "It was nothing - the small kid had tried two or three times before not to give me the ball and the last time he also put it out.

"He's so young but I admit he was doing a good job for his team and, as older guys, we have to understand these situations.

"The referee said he understood why I did it but had to give me a yellow card because I touched him. But, afterwards, I gave the kid a pat on the back.

"Overall, we must treat that Rangers game as a lesson going into this match - and, hopefully, a nice lesson.

"We did not play well and have to try more and all the boys will give everything they have got to help us make the group stage of the Champions League."

AEK Athens kick-started their domestic season on Saturday evening with a drab 0-0 draw at PAOK Salonika and their game against the Jambos will be only the third competitive match of the campaign, with up to 50,000 fans expected in the Olympic Stadium.

Jambos' other Greek defender, Christos Karipidis, moved to Tynecastle last month from PAOK in a £200,000 deal and admits he has already been on the phone to his former team-mates for a rundown on his countrymen.

He said: "I am sure AEK will feel the stress ahead of the game. It won't be easy for us but not for them either.

"It will be a great atmosphere as the AEK fans share pretty much the same attitude as the fans of my former club.

"Maybe the PAOK fans were a little more crazy and, like AEK, they never stop singing."

Karapidis made his debut for Hearts in the first leg in the centre of midfield in the absence of Brellier and Paul Hartley.

Portuguese midfielder Bruno Aguiar played beside him a fortnight ago but is suspended and Karapidis says he has no qualms about moving into the middle of the park again, even though he was signed predominantly as a defender.

He said: "Last time round the team needed a player who could play in that defensive midfield position because Julien was not available.

"If I'm asked to play there again I will be happy to do it. It is not my position but the coach requested I play there in the first leg and it's my obligation to the team to play where I'm asked."

'I knew I'd return to my country to play a Greek team in Europe'

SCOTS v GREEKS

NO Scottish side has won a European tie in Greece and the only player to score for a Scots side was Emerson for Rangers against Panathinaikos - and he will be lining up against Hearts tonight.

OLYMPIC PIRAEUS 3 DUNFERMLINE 0 1968-69 Cup-Winners' Cup

George Farm's Pars crashed to a heavy defeat but still qualified for the next round having won the first leg 4-0 at East End Park.

OLYMPIAKOS 2 CELTIC 0 1974-75 European Cup

Celtic were lucky to escape with a 1-1 draw from the first game in Glasgow but were then well beaten.

AEK ATHENS 2 RANGERS 0 1994-95 European Cup

Walter Smith's side were easily beaten in Athens after an abject display in the Greek capital.

PAOK SALONIKA 0 RANGERS 0 1998-99 UEFA Cup

Rangers ground out a goalless draw to progress after goals from Andrei Kanchelskis and Rod Wallace in the first leg at Ibrox.

AEK ATHENS 2 HIBS 0 2001-02 UEFA Cup

Alex McLeish's men were given a severe beating and couldn't pull the tie round at Easter Road.

PANATHINAIKOS 1 RANGERS 1 2003-04 Champions League

Emerson's goal looked to have won the game but an 87th-minute equaliser cost Rangers two points.

Taken from the Daily Record