Neilson at new club but goes over old ground

Friday 18 November 2011

IT did not take long before Robbie Neilson was back talking about Hearts.

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Robert Thomson

The full-back this week agreed a contract at Dundee United until the end of the season, and is likely to make his debut against the Tynecastle club tomorrow.

Neilson spent 13 years with the Edinburgh side – during which he was sent on loan to Cowdenbeath and Queen of the South – before spells in England with Leicester City and Brentford. It may well feel as though he has never been away.

Hearts have failed to pay all of their players their monthly salaries this week, following another delay last month when senior squad members were forced to wait 19 days to receive payment. Neilson experienced a similar wait for his wages during his time at Hearts, but he does not feel such concerns will have an effect on tomorrow’s match.“It’s a great one to start with against Hearts. There’s not many boys left there from when I played but I know a lot of the backroom staff,” said Neilson. “The off-field stuff won’t be affecting them on the park. We had the same situation when I was there and if anything it unites a squad. “The boys are all in it together and they will want to show that on the pitch. They have strong characters, guys like Andy Webster, and they won’t let it affect them. Maybe Monday to Friday they will think about it but when a Saturday comes they will just want to get their boots on and be playing. I can’t really speak about the ins and outs of what’s happening, all I know is what I’ve read in the papers.” Neilson signed for United after spending a week training with Peter Houston’s squad and admitted the lure of playing for the Scotland assistant manager is what brought him to Tayside. “The manager is a big factor in me coming here, I have known him for a lot of years,” he said.“Sometimes it takes a while to settle in but I already know the manager, backroom staff and a lot of the players so it won’t take long. The team are in the bottom six just now but having trained with the lads already that’s not where we should be. “The team lost a few players in the summer but there are really good youngsters at the club. There is a lot of quality here and we will start climbing the table before too long. Hopefully the start of it will come against Hearts. I don’t know what position I’ll be playing. I have played at left-back, centre-half and midfield so I’ll fit in anywhere the gaffer asks me to.” Houston is expecting a close match at Tannadice. However, the United manager wants his players to replicate the performance which them victory in Edinburgh at the start of the season.“It’s going to be a tough game against Hearts, as it always is,” said Houston, who is also interested in adding Richie Ryan, the Sligo Rovers midfielder, to his squad after a spell training at the club but faces competition from npower Championship side Peterborough United.“We got a great result against them earlier in the season and was probably the best we have defended this season. So we will need a repeat of that. Robbie and Sean [Dillon] played 45 minutes and came through it fine so I should have them in the squad on Saturday.”

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Neilson at new club but goes over old ground

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