Blogging imitates life: Hearts Preview

By: Matt | October 31st, 2008

At the top of the blog, you’ll see the other SPL sides that have someone writing about them here at the Offside. There is of course a Rangers blog, a Caley blog, and the new Aberdeen blog. You also might see less active blogs of the two capital teams, Hibs and Hearts. It seems the bloggers assigned to those teams gave up the dream and all the money, prestige, women that comes with writing about Scottish Football. Both were not really around for very long (the Hibs lad managed two posts before going MIA), but I do not find them at fault as life happens and new commitments arrives. However, it got me to thinking and I believe I’ve come up with a good metaphor. Once again, we see that blogging is just a great metaphor for life. Despite being probably my second least favorite SPL team, when the Hearts blogger arrived I expected great things. Nothing like a little banter between rivals right? After a few good posts though, the lad disappeared, not to be heard from again…which is exactly like Hearts. Every year, Romanov buys some Lithuanian mega star and rambles on how this will be the year that Hearts breaks up the Glasgow hold on the SPL. Every year, Hearts wins there first couple of matches, often against Hibs or another area rival and then they play Celtic and Rangers and are put in there place and then take there place within the lessors of the SPL, or “disappear”. Coincidence that the same thing happened to our former Hearts blogger? You be the judge…

Celtic are coming into the match winners of five straight in the SPL, while Hearts has only won one in there last five and our coming off of two consecutive draws. Last year, Celtic went undefeated against Hearts, winning two of three but drawing their only trip to Tynecastle. Glenn Loovens has been added to the growing list of injured players after picking up an injury in Celtic’s 3-1 defeat of Kilmarnock in the CIS Cup. Captain Stephen McManus is back in the squad and will likely retake his place in Loovens absence. Shunsuke Nakamura will also be available on Saturday, despite having to be subbed out of Wednesday’s match against Kilmarnock.

Tynecastle is not a place that has warm and fuzzy feelings for Scott Brown, as during his Hibernian days he was often the demise of Hearts, but Brown will be making his return to his old haunting ground (I needed at least one Halloween reference) as the SPL’s player of the month for October. Brown scored twice during the month and has seem a vast improvement in his play since last season.

It is always a good atmosphere when Celtic travels to the capital. Many Celtic supporters regard Hearts and there fans just a notch below Rangers and the match on the pitch always seems to be physical as well. SPL teams have seemed to take a liking to trying to knock Celtic about the pitch, as the laundry list of injuries Celtic have picked up. With another Champions League match on the horizon, expect Hearts to follow this strategy but Celtic have showed in previous games that they could handle this strategy and I believe Celtic will take the match 3-1.

(Thanks to soccerhell for the hilarious image. Check them out at soccerhell.co.uk)