An Englishman is travelling north in the hopes of becoming the leader of Edinburgh.
Hearts, who are looking for a new head coach precisely three weeks after firing Steven Naismith, are in early talks with Neil Critchley. After talks between Hearts and the Norwegian Per-Mathias Hogmo broke down on Friday, the 45-year-old former manager of Blackpool and Queens Park Rangers began talks with Tynecastle officials over the weekend.
Critchley is reportedly on his way to Edinburgh and is keen to start working at Riccarton right away. He will be in charge of his debut game when St Mirren visits Tynecastle Park this Saturday, assuming negotiations are successful. After the failed attempt to sign Hogmo, the Hearts management hurried to speak with the Englishman. Less than two months after losing his job at Blackpool, he is prepared to return to football and is anticipated to attract employees to Gorgie.
While Critchley has occasionally used a back four in the past, his favoured starting shape in recent posts has been 3-5-2. After leaving playing early at the age of 24, he has been a coach for 21 years. In the 2019–20 season, he substituted for first-team manager Jurgen Klopp in two cup matches while coaching Liverpool’s under-18 and under-23 teams. Additionally, he served as Aston Villa’s assistant coach under Steven Gerrard.
His resume as a manager includes two stints at Blackpool. During his first season as manager in 2020–21, Critchley led England from League One to the Championship and won the North West Football Awards’ Manager of the Season award. In June 2022, he left Bloomfield Road to take a position at Villa under Gerrard.
In December 2022, Critchley was hired as manager of QPR, but he was fired after just one of his 12 games in London ended in victory. He spent 15 months back in Blackpool in May 2023. After his team lost to Crawley Town and Stockport in the first two League One games of the season, he was dismissed of his duties seven weeks ago.
To save their season, the Hearts need a new leader. With only two points from eight games, they are currently at the bottom of the William Hill Premiership and will require stability in the coming weeks. Moving the Edinburgh team up the league standings and out of the relegation zone would be Critchley’s first priority right now. Since Naismith’s departure, interim manager Liam Fox has been in charge of the first squad, however his full-time position is coach of the B team.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE
