Neilson sharing Hearts' optimism about second leg in Prague

IMMEDIATELY after the first leg, the mood was doom and gloom, gutted to have lost to a team they believed they should have bettered. But a week on and it is that same belief which is giving the Hearts players cause to hope they can overhaul the deficit against Sparta Prague on Thursday and extend their UEFA Cup involvement.

"It's going to be very hard out there," said Robbie Neilson. "We were hoping to take something in the first leg and we never managed it and it was 2-0. It's going to be hard but I don't think they are a great team. I think we just never played at all in the first leg, so if we can get ourselves playing the way we can then I think we have a chance.

"After the [home] game we were obviously disappointed, not just with the result but the performance of the team in general, but then we had a good display against Motherwell on Sunday. It's been a while since we won there and it's a difficult place to go and to get the 1-0 win and the three points was a boost for us.

"And, again [the CIS Cup tie], Alloa was another banana skin, because it's always difficult when you go to those sort of grounds because you are on a hiding to nothing so it's always nice to get the win and hopefully that sets us up for Sunday [against Aberdeen] and then the away game against Sparta."

Had they been approaching that leg against better opposition the towel may have been thrown in, but the fact Sparta are still not firing on all cylinders, allied to the important fact that Hearts themselves gave a display captain Steven Pressley labelled one of the worst in his time at the club, is giving everyone associated with the club something to cling to.

"That's the thing, I don't think they are a great team, I think they are okay, they are not fantastic and I think we can go over there and win. If we can get a goal and put some pressure on them then I think we can go on and do it.

"We have to stay positive, there's no point in being negative. We have to go over there and do a job and hopefully get ourselves through. No point in going there and sitting back, we have to try to attack them and I'm sure that Valdas [Ivanauskas, Hearts manager] will have an attacking formation and we will work on something like that.

"There's no point going there and sitting back, we really have to go for it and hopefully get an early goal and put them under pressure."

Neilson was amongst a long list of underachievers in that poor first leg at a water-logged Murrayfield, where the dampened mood matched the soggy conditions, and, like the vast majority of players in the gargantuan Hearts squad, he knows he is not guaranteed a place in the starting line-up or the opportunity to try to make amends in Prague. With such a big squad, all but a chosen few know that there is no margin for error and no second chances.

"We have a big squad and, it's the same as last season," said the 26-year-old, who is approaching his 10th anniversary as a Hearts player. There are always people putting pressure on you and it's up to you to play at your best and keep yourself in the team."

But, regardless of who is selected, everyone in the dressing room knows Hearts will need to keep all their representatives on the field for the duration of the match to have a realistic chance, according to the right-back. Buoyed by the second-leg show of spirit and determination as they chased their previous European tie, against an AEK Athens team they believe was superior to the Czech side they face this week, Neilson said a similar type of performance would undoubtedly reap better reward this time around provided they succeed in maintaining numerical parity in terms of on-field personnel.

"I do think so. We need to make sure we keep 11 on the park as well, because that made a difference to us. If we can keep 11 men then I think we have a chance. Over in Athens, when we had 11 on the park, I thought we played quite well but then we lost Julien [Brellier] early on and it was downhill from there [Neil McCann was also sent off later in the match]. But if we can keep our discipline and keep all 11 on the park then I think we have a great chance."

There is still a job to do but, psychologically at least, the Hearts players are back in contention. A week ago they were down in the dumps, now they are up for the challenge that awaits them in Prague.

Taken from the Scotsman