Ogilvie could ease Butcher's reservations over Romanov

TERRY Butcher was among the fiercest critics of Vladimir Romanov back in October 2005 when his close friend George Burley's deteriorating relationship with the Hearts owner saw his brief but thrilling reign as manager of the club come to an abrupt end.

Almost three years later, it appears Butcher has revised his opinion of the Lithuania-based businessmen sufficiently to consider being part of the new management team at the club as assistant to Icelandic coach Gudjon Thordarson.

The former Rangers and England captain, it is safe to assume, has taken considerable soundings from Burley about the prospect of working under the Romanov regime at Tynecastle.

Butcher returned to Scottish football, and the country his family now regard as home, at the start of this year as number two to Scotland manager Burley. It is only a part-time position, however, and Butcher is no different to most of us in his need for gainful full-time employment. It is a status that he has not held since an unhappy spell in charge of Brentford last season came to an end, that role itself coming after an unfulfilling and often troubled year as manager of Sydney FC whom he joined after his successful and hugely popular tenure at Motherwell.

Any reservations that Butcher may retain about Romanov would also be eased by the presence in the Hearts boardroom of managing director Campbell Ogilvie. The widely respected SFA vice-president was secretary of Rangers when Butcher joined the Ibrox club as captain in 1986 and they have maintained a mutual admiration for each other ever since.

It is believed Ogilvie is among those enthusiastic about the prospect of the Thordarson-Butcher ticket which would meet the club's statement back on 1 January to install a manager with experience of the British game.

Thordarson, a one-club man as a player with Akranes who was capped once by Iceland, was one of his country's most successful international managers when he took the reins from 1997 to 1999.

Iceland won 10 of their 24 games under his leadership and competed impressively in the Euro 2000 qualifying campaign when they finished fourth in a group behind France, Ukraine and Russia.

He joined Stoke City in November 1999, the club having been taken over by an Icelandic consortium, and led them to promotion in his second full season in charge. Just five days after his Stoke side won the League 2 play-off final in May 2002, however, he was sacked.

Gunnar Gislason, the then Icelandic chairman of the club, said Thordarson's relationship with the board had become "untenable" and that the manager had "not always appreciated the financial constraints within which he has had to work."

Following a brief spell in Norway with Start, whom he failed to save from relegation, Thordarson returned to England as manager of Barnsley in 2003 but lasted less than a season with the Yorkshire club. After returning home to manage Keflavik, he then had a third shot at management in England when he took charge of Notts County in 2005.

After a bright start, however, his team finished fourth from bottom of League 2 and he left by mutual consent in May 2006.

Thordarson has been back in Iceland as coach of Akranes since 2007 and, after a third place league finish last year, they have taken just five points from their first six games of the current season. While his CV hardly glows with great achievement, those championing his cause to Romanov believe that a partnership with Butcher has the potential to succeed with the big Englishman's motivational qualities and experience of Scottish football seen as factors which could dovetail well with Thordarson's perceived coaching ability.

Hearts are keen to have their new management team in place before the first team squad return for pre-season training at the end of this month, although it is not regarded as a pre-requisite by Romanov as he continues to assess alternatives such as Artmedia Bratislava coach Vladimir Weiss and the Belarussian Andrei Zygmantovich who is currently at the helm of Kaunas. The list of candidates, however, is not limited to those three options.

There was no official comment from Hearts yesterday, sources close to Romanov revealing that the club owner has determined there will be no further public pronouncements until a deal for a new manager is signed and sealed.

The collapse of his move to recruit Mark McGhee from Motherwell last month was clearly a significant blow to Romanov's plans and he is keen to avoid any possibility of a repeat of what many viewed as an embarrassing turn of events for Hearts.

FACT BOX

GUDJON THORDARSON

1955: Born 14 September, Reykjavik.

1972: Makes debut for Akranes. Wins five league titles, and one Iceland cap.

1987: Takes first managerial job with KA Akureyri, and wins league in 1989.

1990: Appointed manager of Akranes after their relegation. Wins Icelandic Second Division title.

1991: Lifts Icelandic championship in first season back up.

1997: Appointed manager of Iceland. Loses only eight games in 24.

1999: Takes charge of Stoke City, and guides them into the Championship, but is sacked five days later after a row with the chairman.

2003: Appointed manager of Barnsley, but leaves the next year.

2005: Returns to Keflavik but resigns three days before the start of the season, and joins Notts County.

2006: Resigns from Notts County, and takes over at Akranes again.

2007: Finishes third in league.

2008: In negotiation with Hearts.

Weiss to be interviewed by Romanov at weekend