Alan Patullo: A striking change of heart from McGlynn

MANAGERS move in mysterious ways.

As recently as last Thursday, John McGlynn was proving a little bit tetchy on the subject of strikers, and one particular question relating to John Sutton’s continued occupancy of the substitutes’ bench. A “proven striker” is how he was described by one reporter, an observation that was met with something approaching disdain by McGlynn.

“Was he proven last year?” an agitated McGlynn replied, after what seemed a reasonable request for some guidance on the subject of Sutton’s relative inactivity. “You asked the question, I am just asking. How long do you want to go back?”

And he added: “Are you a proven journalist?” Ouch.

The topic had seemed to rattle the manager, and his response also appeared to close the door for Sutton, certainly in terms of McGlynn relying on him again in the foreseeable future. It certainly didn’t sound like he was being considered for a starting berth in just 48 hours’ time.

Earlier in the week, McGlynn had given an interview to the Edinburgh Evening News, where the subject of Sutton was also broached, along with that of Gordon Smith, whose time on the pitch had been even more limited. The manager was less than gushing in his praise, suggesting that neither was good enough. Indeed, if they were good enough, he argued, they’d be in the team, as it was not in his interests to keep potential match-winners on the sidelines.

“If I thought they were better, I would want to put them in the team because they would give me better results and I would have more chance of staying in my job,” McGlynn explained. “I’m not trying to shoot myself in the foot by not playing players, it’s as simple as that.”

The thing is, it wasn’t as simple as that. These same two players improved almost overnight to be given starting berths in Saturday’s victory over Aberdeen, in what was a startlingly extensive overhaul of his previous beliefs by McGlynn.

His earlier comments were a long way from a ringing endorsement of the players. They certainly could not have helped repair damaged confidence. Sutton returned from a spell in Australia to resume substitute duties with Hearts, after a brief run of games at the start of the season. He scored a goal in his first start of the season, didn’t score again in his next five, and then was substituted at half-time against Dundee. Saturday’s return to the team against Aberdeen was only his fourth start since the beginning of September.

It was ironic, of course, that Craig Levein should have re-emerged from a spell in purdah in time to witness Hearts adopt a two striker set-up that the former Scotland manager was so often condemned for refusing to implement. McGlynn elected to go gung-ho, and what a difference it made. He didn’t just restore Sutton to the team, he also handed Smith a starting jersey.

So what had changed? Had his reaction in the press conference last week been an attempt to employ a form of reverse psychology?

Perhaps Aberdeen’s remarkably wretched record against Hearts, against whom they have now not scored in nine meetings, encouraged him to consider a bolder outlook. Whatever tipped his thinking in favour of the SAS – Sutton and Smith – it was something of a masterstroke, and helped spirits soar at Tynecastle even prior to kick-off. Sometimes, even the promise of something can have a re-invigorating effect. According to those who were there, the mere reading out of the players’ names helped create a more buoyant atmosphere.

Even Callum Paterson looked sprightlier, having been relieved of the burden of scoring goals, and seized on a chance minutes after coming on at half-time. Ryan Stevenson, too, picked the moment to score his first goal since returning, in his 15th appearance. Although much has been made of a goal drought, and Stevenson himself addressed the subject last week, this is the same number of appearances as it took him to score in his first spell at the Tynecastle club. The way he struck the penalty suggested he relished ending this most recent period of frustration in front of goal, and said everything about his nerve.

And Sutton and Smith? No-one is going to mistake them for world-beaters, but given Hearts’ struggle for goals, they surely deserved a chance. Although neither scored, they brought others into play and, admirably, didn’t appear to hold their manager’s comments against him. Or, if they did, they sought to respond in the most positive fashion – on the pitch. Perhaps this was McGlynn’s plan all along.

They certainly helped dig the manager out of a bit of a hole; football supporters being football supporters, the context of the club’s financial problems has not always encouraged them to cut McGlynn much slack. He has been operating under some heat, as was perhaps illustrated by last week’s testy exchange with the reporter.

Pressure sure can concentrate the mind; it can also help change it. And that isn’t always a bad thing.

Scots could benefit from Platini’s flawed plan

IT is easy to be cynical about Michel Platini’s plan to spread the European championship finals of 2020 right across Europe, so let’s get to it.

Clearly, it is a system that has not been devised with the interests of the supporters heavily in mind. Take Platini’s classically Gallic shrug when asked about the thorny question of travelling between games that might be thousands of miles apart.

“There are budget airlines available,” he muttered, when a reporter happened to wonder about the cost to fans last week.

It was the comment of someone who has never had to book or pay for his own flight. It was the crass comment of someone accustomed to being fetched from airports in a hired limousine

Indeed, it exposed Uefa’s modus operandi. Not that their disdain for supporters and their enthusiasm for making vast amounts of money should be viewed as revelatory; one only needs to gaze upon the Champions League, and the fact it has long been tilted in favour of the richest football nations. Indeed, one wonders about Platini’s reaction in private on hearing Celtic had muscled in on the feast last week.

But perhaps, just perhaps, there is something other than pure finance driving the decision to select 13 “host cities” rather than one or two countries, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the European Championships.

It does at least give Scotland a fighting change of hosting some top international action on its home soil. Stewart Regan, the Scottish Football Association, sounds keen for Scotland to be involved in some capacity.

And who knows, we might even have a manager in place by then.