Vladimir Romanov is urged to make ‘dignified exit’

HEARTS manager John McGlynn says he is reluctant to be drawn on the issue of ongoing takeover talks involving the Foundation of Hearts, insisting “the manager and players can’t get involved”.

• John McGlynn refuses to be drawn into Hearts consortium bid, saying they should be left to “the people upstairs”

• Save Our Hearts campaigners penned an open letter to club owner Romanov urging “dignified exit”

Speaking on the day supporters group Save Our Hearts penned an open letter to owner Vladimir Romanov asking the banker to make a “dignified exit” by handing over his majority shareholding to the consortium led by Alex Mackie, McGlynn was yesterday keen not to add his voice to the matter.

Romanov has already rejected a bid by the Foundation of Hearts, who want to bring the 138-year-old institution under the control of the fans.

McGlynn said: “The football manager and players can’t get involved in that. We leave that to the people upstairs. The people in charge will do what they think is the right thing for the football club.

“Whatever is best for the club will come through. Everyone will have different views on that [fan ownership]. If you are a fan, you will want some say in it no matter what club it is.

“Motherwell are doing something similar. It seems to be the way things are going but I’m not in a position to 
comment. I am an employee of HMFC and I will do the best I can on a day-to-day basis.”

Save Our Hearts earlier gave a ringing endorsement of the Foundation of Hearts’ objectives in an open letter that urged 
Romanov to stand aside.

The supporters group – founded in 2004 with the aim of stopping then owner Chris Robinson’s controversial plan to sell Tynecastle and use neighbouring Murrayfield stadium – have resurfaced in the wake of Hearts confessing that the recent winding-up order over a £450,000 tax bill had pushed the club to the brink of extinction.

A section of the letter read: “Last Wednesday, the ‘rollercoaster’ that is Heart of Midlothian FC very nearly came off the rails. That is when the ride got a little bit too scary. I now think that both parties – the fans and you – want to get off.

“Vladimir, you have done some great things since you arrived – debt for equity swaps of significant amounts for example, and we know that, unlike the aforementioned Robinson, you hold the traditions and history of this club in the highest regard. That is why we are now asking you to work together with the Foundation of Hearts so that 138 years of history can be preserved.

“We believe it’s now time for a dignified exit and to allow a new chapter in the history of Hearts to unfold.”