Orestis Kiomourtzolgou may lay claim to having the longest surname in the Premiership and the Hearts midfielder's determined to make the tongue twister last long in the memory.
After weeks of waiting for a visa to allow his career at Gorgie to get off and running, the German also insists his home debut against Rangers this afternoon can become a statement occasion for his side's ambitions this season. The 24-year-old impressed in his first start by helping the Jambos to a 3-1 win against Motherwell before the international break and he's convinced today's encounter can be a proving ground for a team desperate to show they can be a match for the Old Firm during this campaign.
He said: “I would like to make a name for myself here. I am not just here to play and for people to forget me. Everybody wants to be the best version of themselves. I try to give everything on the pitch for my team-mates and fans. Let’s hope it’s worth it. “It’s a big game for us against Rangers, but when you go on the pitch it doesn’t matter who the other team is, you want to win. You don’t think: ‘Oh, it’s Rangers or they have big players who play for their national team’. You go on the pitch wanting to win, it doesn’t matter who they have. If we win, it will send a signal, it will be good if we can.
“Of course there is a gap between Celtic and Rangers and the other teams but I don’t think it is so big from us, especially over the last season, also now with European games. We can show we can also play at this level.”
The former German under-21 international signed a three-year contract with the Edinburgh club from Dutch side Heracles Almelo back on August 28 but had been unable to play or train whilst awaiting the necessary documents. Now after getting an outing at Fir Park, Kiomourtzoglou is adamant the Scottish game is right up his street.
He said: "This type of football is best for me. It’s how I want to play football. I am a guy who likes to run, tackle and scream. "The game in Scotland will be good for me. Everything is faster.
"My first game here everything was up/down, up/down. I like it. That’s one of the reasons I came here. It’s my type of football. It wasn't a shock to me because before I came here I searched a lot and talked a lot to people and I expected this.
“In the Netherlands it is more technical, not really based on the result. Here it is all about the result, you have to win. But in the Netherlands if some teams score for 1-0, they go directly on again and they score 2, 3, 4 and then it is over. But there are some differences in the competitions.
"The fans are also really important. This will be my first home match but I’ve sat in the crowd for games and every situation, every tackle the fans celebrate and scream and you see the team get pushed. It’s really important. It’s different to football in the Netherlands. Here the fans live football. In the Netherlands they want to see really good dribbles, and nice goals. Of course they want to see that in Scotland too but if you win the ball in midfield and play the ball forward the crowd cheers. That does not happen in the Netherlands."
Kioumourtzoglou in the club’s 25-man squad for the Europa Conference League, which means he could feature in the double header coming up against Fiorentina but he insists nobody at Hearts is looking any further than trying to climb into second spot on the Premiership table if they claim the points against Rangers.
He said: "The self confidence will be much higher if we can win against Rangers and focus on them and then we will focus on Fiorentina. We will take it step by step, first one match then the other match.
"We have talked about Rangers with the coaches and the manager, and I know them from watching TV and seeing them in the Champions League.
“They didn’t do so good the last time against Napoli but after us they play Liverpool at Anfield, so they will have pressure on their shoulders when they come to us.
“They beat PSV to reach the Champions League and I saw the game, but then they lost to Ajax, so I have an idea of the level they are at. It’s possible I watched some of their games last season in the Europa League because I watch a lot of football.
"Everyone is looking forward to these games. We are playing at home, so we have quite a good chance to win."
