AFTER three defeats in four matches there may be a tendency for knee-jerk reactions at Hearts, but Mike Tullberg has cautioned against such a response. The Dane believes no-one should "lose the head" following Saturday's home defeat by Kilmarnock.
Tullberg looked confident if slightly short of match sharpness on his home debut. His guile and physical presence troubled the visiting defence but could not provide Hearts with victory, as a late Craig Bryson goal ended a 100 per cent home record.
Whilst he was understandably deflated, Tullberg stressed today that the two-week break from domestic duties is an opportunity not to be missed; a chance to right some wrongs ahead of the now pivotal Edinburgh derby against Hibs on Sunday week. "You can say this is a test or you can say it's not a test but it is difficult. We have to find ourselves and concentrate," Tullberg explained to the Evening News. "We can't go losing our heads about this. Of course we are disappointed because we lost at home, that is not good enough.
"Everybody is disappointed. It should be like that when you lose. The manager said it's easier to stay together when everything is good and you win the games.
"Now we have lost twice in two weeks and it's more difficult. However, we can't go around being disappointed for two weeks, we have to look to the next match.
"We are a very young team and, when you are winning, you would say the break is not good. Now we have lost our last two games, maybe it will be good for us to talk about things. I don't know if it's good or bad, I guess we will see in two weeks' time.
"We have to stand up as a team, we have to show we can overcome this. We are not far from third place so it's important not to forget what the guys did in the early matches."
He may only have managed two competitive appearances so far, but Tullberg already seems in tune with manager Csaba Laszlo's insistence on togetherness. Shouldering collective responsibility is a request the Hungarian would himself endorse whilst striving to revitalise his squad during the international break.
"We had two chances against Kilmarnock to make it 2-1 but we should not blame anybody for not scoring," continued Tullberg. "We had the chances and ended up with nothing, that's not good enough.
"Three points were the most important and we didn't get them because we lost concentration in the last few minutes.
"We were going for the win but, instead of getting three points or even one, we ended up with none.
"The first half was one big mess with both teams just playing long balls. That is not our tactic and I think we changed it at the beginning of the second half.
"If we are going to play the ball in the air, it must go higher because if it's a direct ball not so far off the ground it's difficult to control. Higher balls can be shot on the volley. I think I only lost one or two balls in the second half but I lost a lot before that. We should not try long balls, we should try to play."
Tullberg is now free of the muscle injury which precluded him from Hearts' opening matches of the season. The timing of his return transpired as unfortunate, coinciding with back-to-back defeats against Dundee United and Kilmarnock and a slide to fifth place in the SPL. Laszlo is relying on the striker to add a cutting edge to his side, though.
Signed on a season-long loan from Reggina, his play at times offered a different dimension to Hearts' attack against Kilmarnock.
It was his clever reverse pass which initiated the move for Larry Kingston's equalising goal in the first half and the initial signs are that his presence and mobility will trouble most Scottish defences this season.
"I have been away a long time. Some things I'm satisfied with, some things I'm not satisfied with," said Tullberg.
"I made an assist for the goal, so that is one positive. I had some headers for Miko and Jamie but generally I want to win more headers.
"You only get your timing for headers by playing. Overall I was just disappointed to lose. We have two weeks now to improve and hopefully win the next game."
Tullberg will feature regularly on the Riccarton training fields during the international break as he strives to hone the finer aspects of his game.
By the time Hearts cross Edinburgh for the derby engagement with Hibs, he intends on being fully primed and ready to fully endear himself to the Tynecastle support.
"I want to satisfy the supporters and I just have to get playing and work on my timing. Some of my play was okay, some of it not okay. You only improve by playing.
"I'm not unsatisfied with myself but I'm not completely satisfied either. I feel I'm improving every day. Personally, it's good for me to have two weeks to work on my game.
"I could already feel in the second half on Saturday that I was winning more headers than the first half. That's because you have the timing and know when to jump. Of course, I have to get to know my team-mates as well so the two-week break is a positive thing for me."
It should be used similarly by Hearts, offering the chance to regroup and prepare for a gargantuan effort against their biggest rivals.
Soul-searching is one thing, but losing the head is quite another. Tullberg knows which option is best.
The full article contains 968 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
