Hearts CEO Andrew McKinlay says the club’s analytical search for a new manager identified Neil Critchley as their top target because of his ability to improve players.
The SPFL’s bottom club are in the process of striking a deal with Brighton owner Tony Bloom, allowing them access to his data-led player recruitment system. They used the software to ‘guide’ their search for a replacement for Steven Naismith.
Despite mixed fortunes for Critchley in his two spells as Blackpool boss either side of an ill-fated stint at QPR, Hearts sporting director Graeme Jones described him as ‘the outstanding candidate based on the analytics’ after he was appointed on a two-and-a-half-year deal yesterday.
McKinlay said: ‘The main thing the analytics does is look at managers that have improved the players they’ve worked with. It doesn’t purely look at people that have won.
‘People might win something because they’ve got better players, for example, or they might have a better environment to work in.
‘The analytics very much look for someone that will improve players. I have no doubt Neil will absolutely bring the best out in our players.’
Neil Critchley is unveiled as the new manager of Hearts, replacing Steven Naismith
Hearts chief executive Andrew McKinlay says the new man was backed by the data
Critchley oversees his new players training at Riccarton on his first day in the job
McKinlay insisted Hearts did their due diligence on the ex-Liverpool academy coach, beyond following analytics, but his appointment has received a lukewarm response from some fans after he was sacked twice in the last 20 months – by QPR and Blackpool.
McKinlay said: ‘You talk about this negativity, I’m actually quite encouraged by quite a lot of what I’ve been hearing and reading today since we made the announcement. I know our fans will get behind Neil and wish him all the best.
Much of the negativity stems from the perception that his second spell at Blackpool, where he returned in May 2023 after previously winning promotion to the Championship in 2021, did not go well.
Critchley disagreed, saying: ‘When I came back to the club, it was after a relegation and there had been a lot of change. From changing a losing team to one that was then expected to win, to get to 73 points and only miss out on the play-offs on the last day of the season, to get to the semi-final of the EFL Trophy and take Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup third round to a replay and extra time, I didn’t see it as a negative.’
Critchley was ‘super excited’ to be Hearts boss. ‘From seeing them this morning, I was more encouraged than I was beforehand,’ he said. ‘There was a good energy, good vibe about the group.’
