Former spokesman says look at background vital to understand Hearts supremo

To some, he has been a breath of fresh air who has provided a long-awaited challenge to the Old Firm, introduced players and employees to Hearts that few other owners could or would. To others, he is the victim of a culture clash, misguided in his expectations of fans, the media and football people on these shores and failing to act in accordance with how the game is run here.

There are some who cannot fathom any degree of reason in the behaviour of Hearts' majority shareholder, but one man is able to see through the veneer of mystery and suspicion that often enshrouds Romanov. Charlie Mann acted as spokesman for him when the Romanov regime first touched down at Tynecastle, and says the retired Cold War submariner was unfairly typecast.

"From the early days, Romanov was portrayed as this shady character from Eastern Europe that nobody knew too much about," said Mann. "It was wrong because from day one, his intentions for the club were honourable - and I believe they still are. He wants to take Hearts forward and I think he's done that along the way.

"Of course there's been lots of car crashes along the way, there's been lots of incidents that have happened. I think there's all that illusion that there's a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes and there really isn't. I don't think there's half of what is suggested goes on behind the scenes."

The point is, people in Scotland tend to talk about, probe and demand answers from organisations which operate in the public interest. This culture, explains Mann, exists to a far lesser extent in the part of the world where Romanov grew up and cultivated his business skills.

"Decisions are just not questioned in the (former] Soviet Union," said Mann. "We are a much more media-savvy country - look at the number of newspapers and media outlets that operate in this country. They do question and you have key individuals who will set about and ask the right questions of people they believe are doing something wrong in the game. That's exactly what (UK] journalism and the media is all about.

"That's just the difference in culture. You won't find that sort of public attack on leading businessmen in these (former Soviet] countries. I think it's becoming more open now, but you have to remember that Vladimir has come through the Cold War state, he was on a KGB blacklist. If you're on a KGB blacklist, you're gone like that (Mann snaps his fingers] if somebody says so. A lot of what he had to do and the way he was brought up, he specifically did things and asked questions to find out who his friends were. If he didn't know who his friends were, that could be trouble. If he didn't know who was on his side and who wasn't, and he walked round a corner one day, he could be gone.

"We just don't understand that. He had a business taken away from him that he built up. The KGB came in and said, 'Right, that's fine - thanks. Bye bye.' His workforce, his whole business, gone."

Many of Hearts' ex-players and former managers could relate to that predicament - without the potentially fatal consequences. It is said that they have to tread carefully in the corridors of Tynecastle for fear of finding themselves on the wrong side of Romanov, whose moves to dismiss anyone out of line have often proven impulsive and immediate. But, not everyone sees the same side of him.

"I never had a problem with him at all," admitted Mann. "I think he is very driven, and all the top businessmen have that aura of drive about them that other people don't have - he's got that. He's very sociable, and is one of these guys you can spend a lot of time with. He's very loyal to you and expects a lot of loyalty in return. I would be the same if I'd been brought up in the circumstances in which he had been brought up. I have a lot of respect for him and would work for him again in a minute.

"I think he's a very driven, hard businessman who knows what he wants and sets himself some very high goals and wants to achieve those, whether that's coming up with a magnificent new stadium, with a great team on the pitch delivering really good football and bringing through a lot of good young players, and challenging the Old Firm, which I think everyone wants."

Punching at the same weight as Glasgow's big two was a feat Hearts did achieve under George Burley in 2005-6, and Mann was the man in the middle of it all orchestrating a media frenzy.

He said: "There was a time where he really could have been at the forefront of a significant change in the way Scottish football was run and operated because of the way he'd come in and really challenged the Old Firm.

"Many thousands of people in Scotland want to see the Old Firm challenged because of the domination that they've had, and Hearts were challenging the Old Firm and making a big difference. They were on the six o'clock news regularly and at the beginning a lot of that was for very positive reasons. I think there is an appetite out there for somebody somewhere to take the bull by the horns and challenge Rangers and Celtic. Hearts had that opportunity, and maybe still have - you never know." But Burley was let go after Hearts began the season with eight wins from eight, and many fans instantly turned sceptical of Romanov for removing a key part of their success.

Romanov continues to pull the strings at Tynecastle from his Lithuanian base. But, would being part of Scottish society help him empathise more with Hearts supporters and change his conduct to one more in keeping with the typical British owner?

Not so, says Mann, who reckons Romanov is impermeable to influence on his mindset, having been immersed in a culture so different for so long.

"You've got to remember that he's 62 now and for 56 of those years he was brought up in the Russian way and in the Russian business philosophy where the boss is the boss: you report to the boss, the boss takes control and is in charge, and you don't question often what the boss is thinking or doing or the way he runs his business. It's just a different way of operating. It's not wrong - just different. I often said that to make it work ideally, we would need to move a lot towards him and he would need to move a bit towards us. He does listen to people, but it's just a different culture - he takes the decisions. The big thing is it's his money and in his country the boss is the boss. The boss takes decisions at the end of the day and he's not afraid to take decisions. If he believes the decisions have been right for the club then he'll take them and there's nothing wrong with that."

An unwillingness to compromise is inherent among many successful businessmen, and Romanov has demonstrated this trait on numerous occasions. He displays this same stubbornness every day he is at Hearts as a resolute sense of pride dictates his continuing pursuit of success.

"I don't think he's got it in his mind to sell Hearts at all. He's one of these guys that, if he does something he wants to do it right and wants to do it to the best of his ability. He wants to see Hearts successful and wants to leave a legacy for Hearts, a team that's successful and a team that goes about its business in the right manner, a team that the supporters really want to be involved with.

"I think he's the type of man who wants to be the best he can be at everything he does and he's been hugely successful with that philosophy.

"If it didn't work at Hearts he would be seen as a failure, and he doesn't want that - nobody would want that. I think he's in it for the long-term as far as I'm aware.

"I'm sure there have been seasons and parts of seasons where folk don't want to go to Tynecastle and that's a terrible position to be in if you're a fan. I think he wants to leave them with a stadium to be proud of, a team to be proud of, and a philosophy to be proud of, where you're bringing through exceptional players and challenging for the honours."