(04-06-2026, 11:06 AM)Del-icious Wrote: Keeping in mind Leonard wouldn’t have been signed if we didn’t have injuries.

We don’t have an unlimited budget so I do wonder if Ageu has caused us some problems in that sense.

We were screaming out for a forward thinking centre mid to come on yesterday and the only midfielder we’ve got available is Beni. Someone has bought that Ageu would come back fit and firing and there’s been no backup plan, was just such an obvious gap to fill at the time as well. Maybe they thought Hof would come back and save us

(04-06-2026, 11:15 AM)Sarkozabal Wrote: We were screaming out for a forward thinking centre mid to come on yesterday and the only midfielder we’ve got available is Beni. Someone has bought that Ageu would come back fit and firing and there’s been no backup plan, was just such an obvious gap to fill at the time as well. Maybe they thought Hof would come back and save us

There’s potentially a bit of drinking the JTA kool aid going on at hearts as well and they’ve fully bought into this thing that now we’re a force who will be challenging for the league so we won’t extend ourselves too much this January because these opportunities will come again.

All purely pub chat speculation for me btw ^^. I do back JTA 100% but I’m not sure I’m fully on board with this attitude that 10 year plan we’ll be winning the league in that time frame but I do think we’ll be a far stronger team who put clear distance between the rest. Obv the stars have aligned with the old firm this season but I still think the way Bloom spoke about the 2 of them completely downplays the dominance they have. I can’t speak for Belgium so maybe it’s the same but it’s not even just a case of the OF having more money it’s a mentality baked into the fabric of Scotland that only they 2 have any chance of ever winning the league. Even folk who don’t follow Scottish football would laugh at the suggestion of anyone else being able to do it.

I think it’s that mentality that’s fucked Del in the end tbh and I think even strong characters like Shanks would also be playing knowing that there’s a 90% chance the sucker punch is coming and it won’t last. I’ve had that mentality all season so not claiming to be any different, I’ve never believed even when we were ‘cruising’ that we’d do it.

The last 5 years the winners have had 90+ points.

(04-06-2026, 11:25 AM)Del-icious Wrote: There’s potentially a bit of drinking the JTA kool aid going on at hearts as well and they’ve fully bought into this thing that now we’re a force who will be challenging for the league so we won’t extend ourselves too much this January because these opportunities will come again. 

All purely pub chat speculation for me btw ^^.  I do back JTA 100% but I’m not sure I’m fully on board with this attitude that 10 year plan we’ll be winning the league in that time frame but I do think we’ll be a far stronger team who put clear distance between the rest.  Obv the stars have aligned with the old firm this season but I still think the way Bloom spoke about the 2 of them completely downplays the dominance they have.  I can’t speak for Belgium so maybe it’s the same but it’s not even just a case of the OF having more money it’s a mentality baked into the fabric of Scotland that only they 2 have any chance of ever winning the league.  Even folk who don’t follow Scottish football would laugh at the suggestion of anyone else being able to do it. 

I think it’s that mentality that’s fucked Del in the end tbh and I think even strong characters like Shanks would also be playing knowing that there’s a 90% chance the sucker punch is coming and it won’t last.  I’ve had that mentality all season so not claiming to be any different, I’ve never believed even when we were ‘cruising’ that we’d do it.

The last 5 years the winners have had 90+ points.

The Belgian league has had 5 different winners in the last 9 years. Not downplaying the USG achievement on its own but let’s be honest, it’s not in the same universe as trying to win the Scottish league.

Think we’ve seen that the JTA team clearly just didn’t understand how unique this opportunity was and stuck to their model in January of bringing in guys at good value who will have an impact next season or so. Massive missed opportunity to put a marker down in January. TBH that partly lies with whoever at Hearts is partnering with JTA, needed the backbone to tell them to forget your Mato and Altena types and just get us proven pros to give us a boost to summer.

While I agree with everything, I’m the first year of JTA we are top of the league with 6 games left.

Very difficult to argue with. However the detail says otherwise.

Tbh if Ague was fit and Del played Altena at RB every game, then we wouldn’t have much to complain about…

There is a weird thing going on with Del and Jamestown in that both deserve a massive amount of credit for how our season has gone, it'd be insane to suggest the position of either should even be in question, and yet at the same time it's not clear how good a fit they are with each other. Feels like a JTA manager might not have got us this far to begin with, but now we're already in this position we'd be better off with a Jamestown manager. Maybe just an inevitable stage in the transition (get some wee laptop guy in early on and the likes of Shankland and Halkett are either away or not interested, still have Del late on and you're stuck with 6'4 lumps at RB) but frustrating given how poor both of the OF have been.

Not been convinced by Chesnokov on the wing

But wonder once Braga away in the summer. Do we do a Ginnelly with Chesnokov and play him through the middle.

He's got the physicality and even shuts down defenders.

Would create the room RMF for Altena if he's not going to play RB.

I had literally already forgotten about Chesnokov.
Trust the system, though.

Just thinking, if you compare Cesnekov and Kerjota, it's very clear which one has played in Italy and which one has played in a smaller football nation.

The tactical discipline, awareness and general intelligence just isn't there yet with Cesnekov. Only one of them is a "project" and it's not the wee Albanian.

I honestly think Chesnokov is a 10 and I'd like to see what he can do through the middle.

But Kerjota changes games from the wing. Agreed.

(04-28-2026, 04:59 PM)Cammo Toe 2 Wrote: I honestly think Chesnokov is a 10 and I'd like to see what he can do through the middle.

But Kerjota changes games from the wing. Agreed.

Hopefully at least one of them turns out to be a key man next year. Said it before but while I rate Kerjota’s potential impact off the bench, any game left this season where we don’t see them is very very good news.

Well at least Chessers and Kabore play regularly for the their countries, If they don't work out here we'll be able to get wur money back.

Has anyone we've been hyped for ever been good? I wasn't on board with the Chesnokov hype tbf but I remember people thinking that's our right hand side sorted on to strolling the league now.

I'll say again that the effort into Chesnokov, Mato and Altena should have been a bigger boost than it was to the first team. Compounded by Ageu.

Whilst allowing McPake to join in the summer.

Unfortunate rather than a pile in on the club.

(04-29-2026, 06:55 AM)Shteve Wrote: Has anyone we've been hyped for ever been good? I wasn't on board with the Chesnokov hype tbf but I remember people thinking that's our right hand side sorted on to strolling the league now.

There was a lie that Chesnekov was fast.

(04-29-2026, 07:48 AM)CritchSmile Wrote: There was a lie that Chesnekov was fast. 

I heard through a source he's rated in training.

I think he has something. But agree it doesn't seem obvious on the wing.

(04-29-2026, 06:55 AM)Shteve Wrote: Has anyone we've been hyped for ever been good? I wasn't on board with the Chesnokov hype tbf but I remember people thinking that's our right hand side sorted on to strolling the league now.

Put some respect on El Hassnaouis name pls

Altena seems more of a RW than Chesney

(04-29-2026, 07:43 AM)Cammo Toe 2 Wrote: Whilst allowing McPake to join in the summer.

The arrogance of this statement We’ve not even won the league yet and could yet lose it and we’ve got people talking about ‘allowing’ players that are contracted to other teams to join our club.

(04-29-2026, 08:32 AM)The Great Khali Wrote: Put some respect on El Hassnaouis name pls

What a pass that was BTW.

Jesus Christ shut the fuck up about McPake. Chesnokov has been poor and Mato non-existent but that doesn't mean McPake would've automatically come in from the Championship and spearheaded our title challenge.

Why don't a few of you stop trying to tell others what to think and say.

You want that? Stop visiting a forum. Just talk into a mirror.