Robbie Neilson is “too good” for Hearts and the fans that demanded he leave with an x-rated graffiti message this week, according to Chris Sutton.
The Jambos have lost four on the spin going into Saturday’s clash at home to St Mirren. The Buddies are just four points behind Neilson ’s men, who have seen nearest challengers Aberdeen cut the gap to just one point. Neilson remained bullish this week, stating his belief that Hearts WILL still finish third and urged fans to look at the bigger picture. Finishing best of the rest again will guarantee European group stage football and the cash bonanza that comes with it.
Sutton has been left baffled by the reaction given the job Neilson has done at Tynecastle across two spells. He can't believe there are fans that want him out and reckons the club would be hard pressed to find someone who could do better than the current boss.
“Am I surprised? Yes. Do I understand it? Absolutely not.” Sutton told Scottish Football Extra on BT Sport. “You know, if I’m Robbie Neilson, I’m actually angry at this. He’s done a brilliant job.
“Okay they’ve not been on a particularly good run as of late. They’ve lost four on the spin. But he’s had to contend with a lot this season and overall, if you were a Hearts fan and you were guaranteed third place at this point in the season at the start, you’d have bitten arms off for that!
“There’s always been this element of Hearts fans who, for whatever reason, are not happy with Robbie Neilson. Who could do a better job than Robbie Neilson has done over the last couple of seasons? That’s the question I'd ask Hearts fans.
“In some ways, Robbie Neilson is too good for Hearts and their fans, or the fans that want him out. I find this sickening, I really do.”
Fellow pundit Ally McCoist chimed in: “Would a Hearts fan spraypaint and destroy and vandalise their own badge? Naw, they're not Hearts fans. They’re idiots, that’s what they are. Absolute idiots.
“Chris is spot on. Hearts are sitting exactly where they want to be sitting right now. They're not going to challenge Rangers and Celtic for the league, of course they’re not. That ain’t gonna happen.
“Realistically, they're in a group of maybe three or four teams that are fighting for third place. It’s just over the last four or five games it’s dipped. But they’re sitting in a good position and it’s a position they're well equipped for at this stage of the season.”
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