Csaba Laszlo ousted on another day of long knives at Tynecastle

VLADIMIR Romanov's axe fell again yesterday when Csaba Laszlo became the latest managerial casualty at the club after having tested the Hearts owner's patience once too often. It proved a heavy blow because it was so sudden.

Managers must expect the unexpected at Hearts. But this has to be considered a bolt from the blue. Laszlo began the day yesterday very much in situ as Hearts manager. During an early morning briefing with reporters he sounded excited by the return of Andrew Driver to the squad, if a little deflated by an injury situation he claimed was the worst he had ever experienced in his time in football.

The Hungarian manager had even taken those in the room by surprise when talking initially about tennis. His interest had been piqued by a copy of a newspaper depicting Andy Murray on its front page, mouth agape. He was genial as ever during a 32-minute question and answer session.

He covered a broad range of topics, including even German architecture. But the comments which would have made Romanov's ears prick up were when the manager's train of thought settled on his own struggles with a squad lacking strength in depth.

It has been a recurring theme in press briefings with Laszlo of late. He stressed again and again the importance of keeping full-back Lee Wallace, recently linked with moves to Celtic and Middlesbrough. Without him, Laszlo pointed out, he had nobody to play on the left, with Ruben Palazuelos having sustained a knee injury. Yet, with just two days to go until the end of the transfer window, he conceded there was little chance of being handed "a nice surprise". The limitations of the team had been exposed by the 3-0 defeat to Aberdeen in midweek, he said. But these were customary moans, delivered in his always-engaging style. No-one anticipated they would form the last words of an inadvertent suicide note penned over the course of recent weeks and months.

Laszlo continues a trend begun when George Burley was dismissed by Romanov just months into his tenure in 2005. Hearts might not be top of the league, as they were then, but they have a CIS Insurance Cup semi-final appointment with St Mirren to come on Tuesday night. There is also a league fixture with St Johnstone to negotiate this afternoon. Yet these are now the responsibility of Jim Jefferies after a remarkable day at the club yesterday. Even by Hearts' high standards, this was drama of Bafta award-winning standard. Laszlo was at his post as late as yesterday afternoon. But by 4.30pm he had vacated the premises.

The side have only lost once in their last eight Scottish Premier League fixtures and have risen to fifth place. A heavy defeat at home to Aberdeen on Wednesday saw this run of form stall, while another defeat to the Pittodrie side last month ended the club's Scottish Cup hopes at the first hurdle. But the team's performances have not been the reason for the manager's exit. Instead, his own comments over the course of recent months have helped seal his departure from the club. The manager seemed none the wiser about his fate yesterday morning. Laszlo conducted another press conference with journalists from Sunday newspapers at 2pm, in order to preview next week's cup clash at Fir Park.

But an hour later he was called to a meeting at Tynecastle with directors Sergejus Fedotovas and Vitalijus Vasiliauskas. Here he learned a series of outspoken comments at press conferences had helped seal his fate. Indeed, just that morning at Riccarton training centre he had been out-lining the paucity of his options. A seriously long injury list was not helping matters. But he also blamed the need to push in youngsters such as Scott Robinson for the injuries they had since picked up. Their development was being harmed by this necessity to play them before they were properly prepared for the rigours of the SPL. And this was a charge he was effectively laying at Romanov's door.

Perhaps Laszlo's opening answer at his first pre-match briefing with reporters yesterday said it all. "I am not informed about this actually," he answered, having been asked for an update on Wallace's future. He gave the impression of someone who had been removed from the chain of command. The appointment of Aleksandr Metlitski late last month further undermined Laszlo. It also emphasised Romanov's growing lack of confidence in the manager.

But Laszlo's team could not be faulted for their efforts on the pitch in recent weeks. After a dire day at Hamilton at the start of December saw Hearts lose 2-1 and finish with just nine men, the side went on a run of seven unbeaten matches in the SPL. Yet all through this period Laszlo kept up his campaign to advise anyone who would listen about his struggles behind the scenes.

In October he talked of it being his "destiny" to manage a big club. He clearly was not referring to Hearts. Laszlo stated his surprise that he had not been interviewed by Celtic for their vacant role of manager in the summer. He had also mentioned his own name in connection with the post at German club Hannover 96. Even the Scotland job had attracted him.

A source at Tynecastle yesterday said Romanov had grown tired of the manager pursuing "his own agenda, and not the club's". The suspicion grew that he was "working his ticket" away from Tynecastle. This he achieved yesterday. But on the club's terms, not his own.