Neilson says regular road wins will be needed if the Hearts are going to challenge the Rangers and Celtic.
Hearts manager Robbie Neilson (Jane Barlow / PA)
(PA Wire)
Robbie Neilson admits that the Hearts still have a lot to prove if they are going to challenge the Rangers and Celtic over the course of the season.
The manager was delighted with Saturday’s 5-2 win over Dundee United, but feels that his team, who had failed to win in their previous four games, have not yet shown enough consistency to be considered true title contenders.
He said: “I don’t think you would say we are comfortable at the top end of the league if you saw us last week at Pittodrie (in a 2-1 loss to Aberdeen). For us, it’s about consistency of performance.
“The Rangers went to Motherwell and won 6-1 last week. We need to get to that level where we are constantly going to play away games and win if we want to get close to Celtic and Rangers. At the moment, we will win some and lose some. We need to get to that level.
“For us this season, the key is going to be consistency. Can we do it week after week?
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“Because there is no doubt that we can get to that level (against Dundee United) We will be in a very good position at the end of the season, but we had last weekend in Aberdeen where we were not allowed to play as we wanted and we had problems. especially in the second half.
“It’s about figuring out ways to stay in the game and deliver that performance when things aren’t going well for us. “
Neilson was encouraged to see his team win so impressively without key duo Michael Smith and Liam Boyce. Although he is happy with the strength of his team, the coach believes there is still room for improvement.
He said: “It’s a good position to be in, but I think there are still a couple of areas where we can improve or improve. We are working on that now to recruit in the January window. ”
Dundee United manager Tam Courts, who lost key center back Charlie Mulgrew to injury at halftime, admitted it had been a punishing day for his team.
He said, “It’s been one of those weeks. Kerr Smith has had a personal issue to deal with, we’ve been trying to help Charlie Mulgrew towards the game and then Dylan Levitt retired on Friday so we’ve been chasing almost all week, and that’s how the game played out . well.
“The team will learn from this game and I will learn, and we will be better.”
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