Robbie Neilson firms up Hearts' signing plans and admits Premiership kick-off would have been 'almost impossible'

Robbie Neilson admits Hearts would have found it virtually impossible to start the new season this weekend had they been reinstated to the Premiership on Monday.

An independent arbitration panel rejected their appeal against relegation just five days before the top-flight kick-off.

Hearts will therefore spend the 2020/21 campaign in the Championship. They are due to begin pre-season training at Riccarton next week having been restricted by Scottish Government guidelines on non-Premiership clubs.

Neilson returned to Tynecastle Park as manager last month after winning the second tier with Dundee United.

He feels ready for the challenge of another promotion tilt in Scotland’s second tier, but said returning to the Premiership would have been extremely difficult having been left with only days to prepare his players.

The Court of Session referred Hearts’ and Partick Thistle’s joint legal case to arbitration on July 3 and the final verdict did not emerge until the start of this week.

“As time went on, it became very difficult to plan towards the Premiership because of the time constraints,” Neilson told the Evening News.

“We got the announcement on Monday, which was five days before the start of the season. That would have made it almost impossible to start this weekend.

“We had been looking at both possibilities but moving more towards the Championship as time went on.

“I'm ready for it 100 per cent. I know the league. Hearts will be expected to go and win every game, which is going to be difficult.

“I've obviously been in the Championship twice and won it twice, so I know that you have to be on it in every single game. We will be the scalp for every team in that league and it's important we're ready for it.

“We are up for the challenge of getting the club back in the top flight again and back up the top end of the league. That's the most important thing for us in the next couple of years.”

Neilson is now accelerating recruitment plans to sign three or four new players, with two wide men and a central midfielder among the priorities. He is in regular dialogue with the Hearts owner Ann Budge.

“I've spoken to Ann and we will be speaking again in the next couple of days about how we are going to move things forward. We are still looking to recruit, still looking to move the squad about,” he added.

“It's important we bring good players into this club because this isn't a short-term thing. It's a long-term project to get things moving again.

“We are looking to bring in quality. We have spoken to about getting pace in the wide areas and we have some targets we are moving on. Hopefully we can get them over the line in the next few weeks.”

The sense of injustice over an enforced relegation remains strong within the Edinburgh club’s fanbase, who plan to boycott a number of grounds in the Championship in protest.

Neilson hopes to use the situation as motivation. “As a club and a fan group, we know about that. It's something which is going to fuel us throughout the season. Every ground we go to, we are going to need to use that,” he remarked.

“It's important we all stick together. The way things have worked out is bitterly disappointing but it's the way football is sometimes. We have to make sure we look after ourselves now and use this to get ourselves promoted.

“I don't think it will become a distraction at all. For me, it's about the club all sticking together. That's what we've done in the past and that's what we will continue to do. I think this will bond the club even more.

“There are no breaks in the fanbase at all and everyone needs to pull together because of what has happened to us in the last few months.”

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