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Former Lithuanian national team striker Valdas Ivanauskas continues to work in Edinburgh - last season he temporarily led the team with four Lithuanian national team players in its ranks as the head coach, has been appointed to the permanent position of head coach. He will work together with Eduardas Malofejevas, a specialist from Belarus who successfully trained "Kaunas" this year and will take up the position of sports director at the club.
Prior to that, V. Ivanauskas, who worked as a coach in a club managed by Lithuanian businessman Vladimir Romanov, became the interim team strategist after releasing the head coach Graham Rix in March and helped the team win the Scottish Cup and second place in the national championship, earning a ticket to the Champions League qualifying rounds.
"I never hid my desire to become the head coach of "Hearts", and now I am very happy that this dream has come true. We face a tough season and a lot of pressure. We have excellent players and I believe that we will move forward successfully. It is very interesting to be associated with "Heart of Midlothian" at the moment. Our focus is now on the first friendly match in Edinburgh against "Osasuna", I can't wait to meet the fans again," said V. Ivanauskas from the club's training camp in Monaco.
In addition, the "Hearts" staff was recently supplemented by the former coach of the Belarus national team, 64-year-old Eduardas Malofejevas, who will be responsible for "the strategic direction and development of football at all levels at the club". V. Ivanauskas' assistant will be John McGlynn, and other coaches will remain unchanged.
"This is a big step forward for the club. It was important to strengthen our structure, as it allows us to progress further. It was important that Valdas is a necessary part of this newly created structure. I hope that our new appointments will bring excellent skills and a broader perspective for the improvement of "Hearts" in order to become a powerful European club," said club president Roman Romanov.
Valdas Ivanauskas' appointment was welcomed by "Hearts" team captain Steven Pressley: "This is something we, as a team, wanted. The stability that Valdas brings to the club's coaching staff can never be underestimated. It has given us a huge boost before the start of the new season, we are all looking forward to it."
Meanwhile, the question of who will take over the vacant position of head coach of the leader of the Lithuanian championship, "Kaunas", remains unclear. Temporarily, the position of strategist will be held for the third time in the past three years by assistant Eugenijus Riabovas, who is likely one of the candidates to stay in this position for a longer period of time.
