Hearts CEO Andrew McKinlay is confident the club can finish in the top six this season.
That’s despite the Jambos currently occupying bottom spot in the Premiership after 15 games played, their worst ever start to a league campaign.
McKinlay said in October that he wasn’t giving up on chasing Aberdeen for at least third spot come May, but seemed to dilute that perspective at Hearts’ AGM on Wednesday.
With Hearts now a mammoth 23 points behind Aberdeen, McKinlay revised his end of season prediction by stating he is confident the club can finish at least sixth.
Hearts CEO McKinlay looking up and not down
Asked initially about the prospect of relegation, McKinlay responded: “I am not even using that word. I am confident we will finish in the top six. When you look at the league, it’s very tight.
“I think Aberdeen’s position, I take my hat off to them for what they’ve achieved. I think they’ve made a magnificent start to the season.
“I think it’s been interesting that they’ve now had to play some midweek games, it’s maybe made it a bit harder for them. They haven’t had Europe but they’ve been brilliant.
“If you take them out of the equation – and there’s been some other teams who have done very well, Dundee United and Motherwell in particular – but I think with the fixtures we’ve got coming up, we’ve got an opportunity to start climbing the table.
“First get ourselves back into the top six and then we’ll see what’s before us at that point.”
McKinlay acknowledges ‘concerning’ form
On the club’s current predicament in the Premiership ahead of a busy festive fixture schedule, McKinlay said: “Of course it’s concerning, I think the way the fixtures have fallen hasn’t maybe been the kindest.
“Neil (Critchley) came in and we went straight into a really intense run of fixtures and I think the style of football that Neil’s bringing to the team, and this is just my personal view.
“We now go into seven fixtures, four at home, three away, which takes us up to the end of the second round of fixtures and we need to do well in those fixtures, but I think we know that.”