© EuroFootball.com
Lightning struck in the clear sky of Scotland - the leader of the country's "Premier" league, Edinburgh club owned by businessman from Lithuania Vladimir Romanovas, head coach George Burley resigned from his position just before Saturday's match against "Dunfermline".
This season everything has been going great for the "Hearts" team - they have remained undefeated so far and are leading the Scottish league, surpassing both giants from Glasgow. On Friday, the club owner V. Romanovas increased his shareholding to 55 percent and offered to buy all remaining shares.
Completely taking over the control of the club, ambitious Romanovas promised to further strengthen the team in January, and despite the fact that in the evening the team's strategist G. Burley welcomed his intentions, Saturday afternoon leading to the "Hearts" match against "Dunfermline" at home, talks began about the sensational withdrawal of the coach.
Rumors proved true - for the match, with the fans who gathered at the "Tynecastle" stadium shocked by such news, temporarily appointed assistant coach John McGlynn. Later, the club published an official statement on their website, stating that due to "irreconcilable differences" it was mutually decided to part ways with the coach.
The specific reasons for the departure of former "Ipswich" and "Derby" coach G. Burley are not disclosed, however, there are various speculations - it is believed that he may have resigned due to disagreements with V. Romanovas, allegedly the latter interfered too much in the coach's work, or because he is preparing to work elsewhere and is already eyeing the position at English club "Aston Villa".
As announced in the statement by "Hearts", now they will be looking for a new high-level coach who will help the team secure a place in the next season's Champions League. The club president G. Foulkes refused to comment on the reasons for the coach's departure due to a signed confidentiality agreement and said he will not rush to find a replacement.
"It is important that we look to the future. The club is more important than any individual. We want to compete with "Celtic" and "Rangers" for a place in the Champions League, and we will give as much time as needed to find a good coach. Naturally, I'm not happy to announce this, but there is no point in dwelling on the past," said "Hearts" president G. Foulkes.
Meanwhile, team captain S. Pressley admitted that he is saddened by the coach's departure: "I am very disappointed. The coach was very popular among the players. All of this is a complete surprise. We do not know about the disagreements between the club management and the coach, but players are hired to do one thing - strive to achieve results, so we will remain focused on this goal."
The 49-year-old G. Burley, who resigned from the manager position at "Derby" last summer due to disagreements with the club's director, replaced the dismissed John Robertson as the "Hearts" coach in May. Strengthened by several powerful foreign legionnaires, the coach and the team defied skeptics' predictions and did not experience a single failure in the first 10 league matches, solidifying their position at the top of the Scottish "Premier" league.
