Ex-Hearts star Brellier gives his verdict on the derby

Published on Wednesday 17 March 2010 09:27

JULIEN BRELLIER is relaxing at home in Grenoble, a small city in the Rhône-Alpes region of south-east France. His pensive state of mind is betrayed by frequent pauses during conversation about his future.

Currently without a club, he must consider his next career move carefully so the surrounding mountains are particularly apt given the difficult road ahead. It is three weeks since the midfielder severed ties with Swiss club FC Sion and became a free agent outwith FIFA's scheduled transfer windows. He is training with local side Grenoble Foot 38, the bottom club in France's Ligue 1, to maintain fitness.

The solitude is in stark contrast to five years ago when a pulsating Edinburgh derby debut set the scene for Brellier's love affair with Hearts supporters, which exists to this day. With only family to occupy his mind for now, he has plenty of opportunity to contemplate this weekend's Hearts-Hibs encounter, a fixture which instantly endeared him to Tynecastle natives in August 2005.

He signed on a free transfer only days before Hibs arrived in Gorgie to offer the first genuine test of George Burley's new Hearts side. Brellier was tossed into the fray knowing literally nothing of inner-city Edinburgh rivalry. He thrived in an emphatic 4-0 victory, and an idol was born.

Fans immediately warmed to his combative style and selfless approach. Before long the classical tune by the Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi from the opera Rigoletto, La Donna e Mobile, was adapted to suit "Ju-li-en Brellier" rather than "Vla-di-mir Romanov". Then it was French tricolours emblazoned with "Le Juge". You know the rest.

Those days may be consigned to history, but several potential derby debutants in the home dressing room would be grateful for Brellier's advice on how to handle this weekend's showpiece. Perhaps none more so than Ryan Stevenson, having transferred from the relative serenity of First Division Ayr United. Brellier can boast of adjusting instantly and seamlessly to an atmosphere he still considers one of Europe's best. It was the ideal start to life at a new club.

"I didn't know anything about the Hearts-Hibs derby. I just knew Celtic and Rangers, nothing about Edinburgh," he told the Evening News. "On the day of the match I was surprised by the big atmosphere. I remember Steven Pressley and all the Scottish guys were very excited. They tried all day to make sure we knew how big the match was.

"I had just come from Italy where the beginning of the match is very slow, nothing like Scotland. All the players there just look to do their jobs for the first ten minutes. So I just looked to play my first pass easily against Hibs and one of their players came straight through to take the ball. I realised I had to keep myself in the game but after that it was a good day for me and the team.

"You try to treat the game like every other game but the supporters want to win so much. You should be ready for a fight, because it is a fight. I'm sure the players who will play are professional and know their jobs. They will know how to start the game.

"I was 23 when I joined Hearts, so I had five years of professional football behind me. I was not afraid. For young players it is very hard. I remember the Hibs goalkeeper and players that year, it was very hard for them because we were so good. To start your career in this game is very hard. It is not a normal game but it is your job. For me it was a very good beginning to my Hearts career, the best start I could have dreamed.

"I hope the young Hearts players can have the same start as me. After Hibs, all the other teams are easier. The relationship with the fans and the club is easier because you have shown you are good enough to play for Hearts." Derbies in Italy, Switzerland and England pale in comparison to Scotland, according to Brellier. He had the pleasure of gracing Inter Milan as a teenager but managed only a succession of loan moves to other Italian clubs and left the San Siro without a senior appearances to his name. He has since sampled Norwich City against Ipswich Town and Sion versus Neuchatel Xamax. As blood-thumping derbies go, they are barely worth mentioning.

"I played in Milan derbies but only for the reserve team. It was nothing like Edinburgh. Even Hearts reserves against Hibs reserves is more attractive than in Italy. I didn't play a lot of derbies in Italy because it is such a big country and you don't have many derby opponents. In Switzerland, it's not good in a derby. It's nothing like Scottish or English football. The fans are so quiet.

"I can't compare any derbies to the Edinburgh derby. Along with the Glasgow derby I think it is the best in Europe. Maybe in Greece Panathinaikos and Olympiakos is similar. The quality of football is maybe better in other countries but not the atmosphere."

You might find it peculiar that Brellier is clubless with the football season approaching its business end. At 28, he did not expect his Sion career to end so abruptly but returned home of his own accord with four months remaining on his contract. It appears his relationship at Hearts with Romanov, who did not share public affection for the Frenchman and once termed him a "three out of ten" player, was not unique.

The Swiss architect and Sion owner Christian Constantin has a similar reputation for outspoken gestures and influencing team selection. At one stage he had appointed 22 managers in eight years at Stade Tourbillon. In 2008 he parted company with German coach Ueli Stielike and revealed he would be taking charge of the Sion team himself on an interim basis. Constantin stated Stielike had refused to train the players after being told to submit his team selections to the owner for approval.

It all became too familiar for Brellier, who it is fair to say objected to the methods from above when frequently left out of the Sion team this season.

"I left because there are a lot of problems. It is not a great club," he said. "There were always problems and a lot of things happened. I can't talk about it, I just left because it was not for me. That's it. I'm free now so I'm just keeping in good shape by training with Grenoble. I don't have anything special for the future because I just left Sion. We are talking with some clubs and looking, but nothing is definite."

Would he consider Scotland? Romanov would be unlikely to sanction a return to Tynecastle after Brellier's training-ground tackle on Bruno Aguiar and altercation with a youth team player late in season 2006/07. Both contributed to the termination of his contract by mutual consent. But there are many SPL clubs who would happily find a place for a player of the Frenchman's stature.

"I would say why not? It is not a good time to break a contract so I would think about coming back to Scotland. I have good memories there but I really don't know what I will do."

He can afford to take his time. Unlike the early moments of that derby debut.

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