I WANT TO BE KING PIN FOR HEARTS

MAURICIO PINILLA netted his first goal for Hearts then revealed he has fallen in love with football again.

But the Chilean striker still has some way to go to prove to his countrymen he is anything other than a flop in Europe.

The 22-year-old scored the opener in the 4-1 win over Inverness at the weekend but the media in his homeland were distinctly underwhelmed.

Pinilla was labelled one of the best young striking prospects in South America when he netted 20 goals in a season for Universidad de Chile four years ago.

He moved to Inter Milan but scored only a handful of goals in subsequent spells at Chievo, Sporting Lisbon, Racing Santander and Celta Vigo.

Pinilla is determined to get his career back on track at Tynecastle after joining from Santander in the summer on a 12-month loan deal with a three-year option.

Chilean newspaper Las Ultimas Noticias greeted news of his first goal in the SPL with the ironic headline 'Miracles exist - Pinilla scores a goal'.

However Pinilla, Chile's top scorer in the recent World Cup qualifiers with three goals, dismissed the critics.

And he vowed to repay Hearts for showing faith in his potential by handing him the chance to shine in the SPL.

He said: "I was very happy because I had the chance to play almost an entire league match for the first time in a long while.

"I've started to fall in love with football again after scoring this goal and it confirms I made the right decision coming to Hearts, despite the fact many people told me they were not a big European team.

"The most important thing for me is this club has put its trust in me and has given me the chance to play, something I've not had for a long time.

"I'll keep working very hard to pay them back for their faith. This is just the first goal. I expect to score many more."

Meanwhile, Vladimir Romanov has told Julien Brellier he has not been made a fall guy for the club's Champions League exit.

Brellier, 23, was dropped for the Inverness game after being red-carded against AEK Athens, including a caution for wearing earrings.

Agent Mauricio Di Giorgis joined the debate by claiming his client is being penalised for refusing to sign a new deal.

But Romanov said: "No one at the club blames Brellier for anything that happened in Greece and there was no attempt to punish him by resting him for the Inverness game.

"The decision was made by coach Valdas Ivanasukas, who wanted to experiment with different players."

Taken from the Daily Record