Maroon at heart, but Berra admits tough times took their toll

Stephen Halliday
CHRISTOPHE Berra may have left Hearts, but it will take some time for Hearts to leave him. Throughout an illuminating conversation with reporters at Scotland's squad gathering in St Andrews yesterday, the 24-year-old defender constantly used the word 'we' when referring to the Tynecastle club.
Having been with Hearts since he was a schoolboy, Berra can be excused for still subconsciously feeling part of them. Yet as well as finding his £2.3million transfer to Wolves last week something of a wrench, he admits it has also allowed him to shed a considerable burden. As captain of Hearts during one of the most tumultuous periods in their history, Berra often found himself as the focal point of a team having to cope with uncertainty off the pitch and instability on it. It is an experience he believes will serve him well in the longer term as he looks to help Wolves return to the top flight of English football and also add to the three caps he has won for Scotland so far.

"There are not many people who will have dealt with the things I've dealt with at Hearts," he said. "You learn from mistakes. I was 22 when I was made captain and the situation at the club got a lot worse after people like Steven Pressley, Paul Hartley and Craig Gordon left.

"There were times I thought 'Should I have taken this on?' But I had the armband at a big club and it helped me take a lot of responsibility. It made me a stronger person. Last season, the off-field stuff damaged us as a team. There was uncertainty over the management and coaching and it all had an effect on the squad. Csaba Laszlo has come in and organised the boys and look how much better Hearts have done. I hope we get a European place.

"So sometimes it does feel like a weight off my shoulders. I am not the captain at Wolves so I can simply concentrate on my own job. I won't have to go to the manager's office after training and sort stuff out. There were always things needing arranged on behalf of the players. There were all the normal things a captain does and, at Hearts, it was maybe more difficult than it should have been, but I have learned from the whole experience.

"I had a lot of ups and downs to deal with but I feel I have come through it as a stronger person. I think it will do me a lot of good in terms of my character. I hope it has made me a better player."

Berra made his debut for Wolves in a 2-1 defeat at Coventry on Saturday, but the Molineux club remain four points clear at the top of the Championship and on course to fulfil his ambition of playing Premier League football. "It has been a very hectic ten days or so, signing for Wolves, moving south and making my debut," he said. "I wasn't even 100 per cent against Coventry because I'd had a stomach bug. But it was a good experience and I am looking forward to the challenges down there. It did snowball quickly. I trained at Hearts on the Friday and I was in the side to face Hamilton at New Douglas Park. I then got a phone call and I flew south.

"I have been at Hearts my whole life and Edinburgh is my hometown. It is a great city. Obviously it will be hard leaving but I had always told my mum and dad that I fancied a move to England. I have ambitions in life to play at the highest level and to do that you have to make sacrifices. I'm leaving my home but if I do well it will all pay off and I will reap the rewards. Birmingham is only a 50-minute flight away and family and friends will come and visit. And the Wolves squad is full of young guys who get on well together. I could have stayed at Hearts until the summer but there was a good chance to leave now. Wolves are going through a sticky spell but are still top of the table. We have to think positively because of that. From what I have seen already, we are definitely capable of stringing some wins together.

"I am sure our manager Mick McCarthy can improve me with him being a former centre-half. He told me before it appeared in the press that he had spoken to Billy McNeill about me and his recommendation had been good. That was a great compliment and a real boost for me."

On the international front, Berra faces the challenge of trying to oust one of Celtic's current central defenders if he is to secure a regular starting place in the Scotland side.

"It's hard for me to get a game with Scotland because Gary Caldwell and Stephen McManus are the men in possession," he added. "They are doing well for Celtic and have been champions for three years.

"Going to England may improve my chances a wee bit, but I just have to bide my time and see what happens."

Taken from the Scotsman