JAMBO JOY AS SPARTA BOSS CZECHS OUT

HEARTS' UEFA Cup opponents Sparta Prague have sacked manager Stanislav Griga despite him guiding the side to a 5-2 Czech Cup win over Dvur Kralove on Wednesday.

The 45-year-old paid the price for poor league form so far this season. Sparta have won only two of their first five matches and are five points behind early leaders FK Mlada Boleslav who beat them 3-0 at the weekend. Hearts face the Czechs in Edinburgh on September 14 with the return clash two weeks later.

Sparta, who are ninth in the table, hope to name Griga's successor today but they will play just one league game, against FC Tescoma Zlin, before they travel to Scotland.

Griga was appointed last October and Sparta finished fifth in the league last season.

Meanwhile, Tynecastle coach John McGlynn last night warned Hearts' latest Lithuanian imports that they won't find it easy to break into the team.

Striker Andrius Velicka and midfielder Kestutis Ivaskevicius joined Valdas Ivanauskas' squad from FBK Kaunas earlier this week. McGlynn watched them in action in a 2-0 reserve win over Falkirk on Tuesday.

He said: "The new boys did okay. Velicka played for 80 minutes while the other lad got 45 but it will probably take them two or three games to get used to the Scottish style.

"We already have a few strikers and a few right-sided players. The new lads will add to the competition for places although there already is competition so we will just wait and see what happens with them."

Hearts have been boosted by the news that defender Christophe Berra and striker Michal Pospisil will be back from injury in time for their next league game against St Mirren a week tomorrow.

Berra twisted his ankle in the Champions League defeat against AEK Athens last week while Pospisil has had a dead leg.

McGlynn said: "Christophe will train with the first team tomorrow and I'm sure he will be okay to face St Mirren.

"We are hopeful Michal will also be fit."

Taken from the Daily Record