Yan Dhanda met the media at Oriam to discuss the appointment of Neil Critchley, the likelihood of ever scoring another headed goal, and how the Hearts squad are feeling ahead of St Mirren’s visit to Tynecastle. Aaron Fraser reports:
When Neil Critchley was appointed as the new Hearts Head Coach earlier this week, there won’t have been many happier faces in the Tynecastle dressing room than Yan Dhanda. The pair have enjoyed a long-standing relationship in football, going back to their days at Liverpool.
Both Dhanda and Critchley joined Liverpool at similar times, and in the years that followed, Critchley helped to mentor the young Dhanda as he moved up the age groups at Anfield.
“I went to Liverpool when I was 14 and left at 19. For probably four out of the five years I was there, I worked with the gaffer. I moved up to his under-18 team when I was 16 and then had him at under-18. Then when I moved up to under-23, so did he.”
“So I had him for pretty much the whole time I was at Liverpool and worked closely with him and Mick Garrity. So I know him well, they know me well, they know my family, they know pretty much everything about me.
“So yes, he improved me massively the whole time I was there. He’s someone who I have a lot of respect for.”
“He helped me on and off the pitch, he helped me turn from a kid into a man. And he knows that. I’ve kept in touch with him. He knows what I think of him. I think it would be perfect for the club to have someone like him here who actually really cares about his players.”
Dhanda was full of praise for his new Head Coach, and more than happy to share how Critchley helped him improve both tactically and mentally as a young player making the step up to senior football. When asked if Critchley was his biggest mentor in the sport, Dhanda agreed:
“Yes, definitely. Obviously, you have ups and downs in form and stuff, but he’s someone who stood by me, believed in me. I played a lot of games under him, scored goals and really enjoyed football under him.”
“Tactically he really helped me, especially going from academy football to Swansea and into a men’s game. I think he’s someone who really helped me tactically with positioning and attacking positioning, defensive positioning, transition positioning.
“I was saying to the young lads here, he’s someone you would want to be a gaffer because he really cares for young players and wants to improve everyone.”
Mick Garrity is Critchley’s trusted right hand man, having worked with him at Liverpool, Blackpool and Queen’s Park Rangers. Known for his brutal honesty, Garrity will pull no punches if he feels that standards are not being met. Dhanda lifted the lid on the dynamic between the pair, and how that translates onto the training ground:
“Mick was there the whole time I was at Liverpool as well as his assistant. They’re very close. Mick, from what I remember, he’s very opinionated. So if he thinks something, then he will tell the gaffer.”
“I know he’s the assistant manager, but he will tell people what he thinks. He’s brutally honest and the same with the gaffer. I think that they’re good people, they care for everyone but they’ll be brutally honest.”
“If we’re not performing, they’ll tell us. If you want to question anything, then you’ll get an honest answer, which I think is the best way and as a player you want to hear.”
So far, Hearts’ only win of the season was thanks to a Dhanda goal. His last minute winner, away at Dinamo Minsk, provided the Gorgie faithful with a moment to celebrate, in what has been a dismal season so far. When asked if he fancied repeating the trick against St Mirren, Dhanda laughed as he acknowledged another header was unlikely:
“It was my first header I’d ever scored, so it’d be nice to score another one, but whoever scores, I don’t think it really matters. I just think we need to get that first win in the league and push on from there. We’re quite optimistic about tomorrow and hopefully tomorrow’s the day we get that first win.”
Heading into Critchley’s first game in charge against St Mirren, morale is good in the Hearts dressing room. Dhanda emphasised that the fresh start that occurs when a new manager comes in has impacted the players positively:
“It’s been good. I think when a new gaffer comes in, obviously it’s a fresh start for everyone, whether you’ve been playing or you haven’t been playing.”
“I think it’s a clean slate and everyone has a chance to fight for that place on Saturday, because the Gaffer will give everyone a clean slate and that’s what it’s all about.”
“So everyone’s been at it. Everyone’s been optimistic and I think that the whole team just wants to get that first win and like I said, hopefully tomorrow it’ll be there.”
The big games are coming thick and fast for the men in maroon. After Saturday’s clash with St Mirren, Hearts host Omonoia Nicosia in the Conference League, before heading across Edinburgh for the opening derby fixture of the season. Dhanda says that having so many exciting games to look forward to has helped everyone to focus on working hard to be in the head coach’s plans:
“Definitely. We’ve got a game at home tomorrow which is massive. Everyone wants to be playing at home and then you’ve got a game Thursday night in Europe which is massive.”
“Everyone wants to play in Europe, and then obviously the big game on Sunday where everyone in the changing room wants to be playing.”
“It’s a big week and I think that’s why everyone’s so focused with the new Gaffer coming in. Because you want to be in the team. You want to be playing and everyone has a clean slate so everyone has a fair chance to be playing.”
