Hearts' Zaliukas: No more mistakes

BARRY ANDERSON
ADMITTING to mediocrity is a prickly prospect for any footballer, yet Marius Zaliukas bucks the trend somewhat. The defender's form going into tomorrow's meeting with Rangers could hardly be described as imperious due to a recent sequence of unconvincing displays. To his credit, he isn't about to shirk the issue.

Speaking exclusively to the Evening News, Zaliukas betrayed a frustration at not justifying himself in recent games for Hearts. Poor concentration has created chinks in the team's armour, witness last Saturday's breakaway goal by Falkirk's Steve Lovell. The Lithuanian admits to being culpable more than any of his colleagues in this respect and is striving to eradicate such lapses, starting tomorrow.

Old Firm visits to Tynecastle are not occasions for sub-standard defending and Zaliukas knows it. He began the season dominantly at centre-back but the onset of winter has brought an uneasiness to his play. Guilty of slack marking when Aberdeen's Darren Mackie scored at Tynecastle last month and then ordered off against Celtic for a professional foul on Scott McDonald the following weekend, he simply hasn't had his troubles to seek.

If there is a time for improvement, it would seem to be now. Zaliukas and Christophe Berra, Hearts' central defensive pairing, are entrusted with the task of protecting the occasionally erratic Janos Balogh against a predatory Kris Boyd tomorrow. Full focus and commitment will most certainly be the order of the day.

"At the beginning of the season my form was good, but now, in the last few games, I have made mistakes. I am trying to avoid that," said Zaliukas. "Maybe it's lack of concentration, I'm just trying to give the team my best. I only think about the team. We are playing on the field, we are not sitting at the side of the pitch, so you have to carry on. If I make a mistake and we lose a goal, I have to work harder to win the game.

"I don't feel good after we lose a goal if it is my fault. I look to touch the ball again soon after but you wonder if your touch will be good, so maybe you lose confidence. You just have to carry on. Everyone wants to learn from their mistakes and be better. This is a target of the whole team, to improve together and qualify for Europe."

The magnitude of games against Rangers and Celtic can be overwhelming for an FBK Kaunas loanee. Zaliukas recalls the fervent atmosphere when he first encountered an Old Firm side in November 2006, three months after arriving from Lithuania.

"When I came here, the Rangers and Celtic games were like 'Wow'," he said. "They are leaders of the championship and that brings pressure, but it is more interesting to play against teams like this. I remember last season when we won 4-2 at Tynecastle. That was a very good day. We just came back from a training camp in Lithuania. I don't know about the other guys but I was very relaxed after that training camp. You could see I was at home there. We played Rangers and it was a great performance, I played in midfield that day and everyone had a good game."

Despite that early flirtation with the holding midfield role under Valdas Ivanauskas, there is little doubting Zaliukas' strengths are best suited to central defence. His partnership with Berra is now well established and both have become regular fixtures in their respective international squads as a result.

Berra's status as an emerging Scotland defender has attracted the attention of, among others, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Fulham in recent months. Fears that he could be the subject of transfer bids during the January window are inevitable but Zaliukas recognises the value of keeping the club captain where he is.

"No-one wants him to leave. He is our captain and a big man in the team. But it's his life and he will decide if he wants to go or not," said Zaliukas.

"In every game, as a captain he is growing up fast. He gets better and better and I think he will become a much bigger player than he is now. He has played some games for Scotland already and I think he will play more at this level.

"This is my third season with Christophe and we have quite a good understanding with each other. We can help each other and the other members of the team. I hope we will carry on these performances and keep the team near the top of the league."

Zaliukas' own long-term future must also be considered less than certain. His loan contract from Kaunas, the Lithuanian club which, like Hearts, is financed by Vladimir Romanov's Ukio Bankas Investment Group, expires at the end of the season. An instant renewal is probable provided Romanov considers him worthy of retaining a place at Tynecastle, but the player is taking nothing for granted.

"I think I will be here until the end of the season, that is the length of my loan contract," he continued. "We must see what happens in January but I think I will be here. I don't think about anything else yet. I haven't had an offer or anything. If I got one, then I would think about doing something. Everyone has ambitions and I am the same but time will tell."

Zaliukas' ultimate aim is to grace the European arena. Kaunas's status as one of the continent's minnows meant progress beyond the borders of Lithuania was virtually impossible during his time there, and he had to endure the frustration of being cup-tied when he arrived at Hearts as the club embarked on UEFA Cup matches against Sparta Prague.

At a time when manager Csaba Laszlo is striving to augment the experience within his youthful squad, Zaliukas points to the steep learning curve that European qualification would bring.

"Our squad is very young just now so European experience would be very good," he said. "You get a lot of confidence and experience from playing in Europe, this can help you with the national team. Also, more clubs can see you, maybe to buy you.

"I played for Kaunas in the UEFA Cup before I came here. When I arrived in Edinburgh I did not really adapt to the team straight away. It is always hard to sit in the stand when your team is playing and you can't help them. It was always good to play in Champions League qualifying matches, they are exciting, but when I was at Kaunas we never got very far. Not like Kaunas did this year against Rangers."

The cheeky sign-off intimates the battle for one-upmanship that will ensue at Tynecastle tomorrow. Zaliukas is determined to stand tall and be relied upon once again.

Taken from the Scotsman