Laszlo offers sympathy to beaten Paatelainen

GLENN GIBBONS
CSABA Laszlo extended sympathy and understanding to Mixu Paatelainen following Hearts' cup victory over Hibs – and followed up with the suggestion that, in losing 2-0, the Easter Road side may have got off light. Despite a result that took Hearts into a fifth-round tie at home to Falkirk, Laszlo could not be described as elated with his team's performance.
The Tynecastle manager had been asked for his reaction to Paatelainen's claim that the Hibs striker, Steven Fletcher, had been sent off despite failing to make contact with his "victim" Hearts defender Christophe Berra.

"Well, before you talk of these things, you must see the television replay, so it is not right to make a comment," he said. With typically puzzling self-contradiction, the voluble Hungarian took less than a minute to reveal that he had seen the replay. He said nothing about the incident itself, but suggested that Paatelainen's remarks were simply the result of natural frustration.

"I think when you lose a match like this 2-0 at home, it is natural to look for things," said Laszlo. "I can understand it is difficult for Hibs. There was a lot of aggressiveness in the match, I remember a challenge from behind on Ruben Palazuelos by a Hibs player (Lewis Stevenson) and it was a yellow card.

"But it is impossible to tell what effect such things have on a match. I mean, who is to say we would not have won 3-0 playing against eleven men? I have also won matches while playing with ten men. I actually think we should have won 4-0. People may think I would be very happy with my team today, but that is not true.

"I am happy with the result and with certain aspects of our play, but not with all of our performance. Winning 2-0 looks okay, but there were many things wrong with how we played. In the first ten minutes, for example, there was too much uncertainty in our team and our concentration was not what is required for a derby match. There was not enough passion in our players up front. I told him (Christian Nade, scorer of the first goal] that this is a derby and your heart has to be in the right place as well as your mind."

Laszlo is threatened with the return of his goalkeeper, Janos Balogh, to the Hungarian club, Debrecen, if Hearts cannot reach agreement on making his loan permanent. "He can play in our next league match (Kilmarnock on Saturday]," he said, "but that is it. So, the two clubs will have to come to an agreement or he goes back." Hearts will secure Balogh's transfer for a £150,000 fee.

Taken from the Scotsman