DANIEL STENDEL wore the look of a man who thought he had just reached the summit of Everest only to then realise there was another gargantuan peak still to climb.
The German was being diplomat to say the least when he admitted that he had “expected more” from his Hearts team after watching their pitiful performance against St Johnstone.
Stendel had hoped to have seen some semblance of improvement after five days working with the squad but there was little evidence of that here.
The size of the challenge ahead of him - as he looks to steer Hearts away from relegation danger – was laid bare for him here. Hearts had one meaningful shot on target in the whole match.
READ MORE: What can Hearts fans expect from Daniel Stendel?
It will take time for him to put his stamp on things but poor communication was evidently to blame for the concession of the game’s only goal on Saturday as Callum Hendry was allowed to run untracked to head Matty Kennedy’s corner into the net.
“We played zonal marking,” revealed Hearts goalkeeper Bobby Zlamal. “And the guy was in front of me, then he went to the near post – and had a free header. It’s disappointing.”
Hendry could hardly believe his luck. “The manager told me to sit on the ‘keeper for the corner and no-one was with me,” said the goalscorer. “We had two corners previously and no-one was on me. I was on my own.
“There was five yards between their ‘keeper and the front line because they were zonal marking. Matty's put it right on the spot I wanted it - it was a great ball in.”
Zlamal revealed Stendel had tried to impart his ideas in the build-up to the match but there was little time to perfect them. The former Barnsley boss will have two more days to work on it before Celtic arrive at Tynecastle on Wednesday night.
“We play a different style, more compact and more pressing, but he’s only had a short time – we’ve trained for five days,” he added.
“It needs time to change and be better. We have a lot of games now. It’s a positive that we’re playing again on Wednesday.”
Stendel’s plea for the notoriously fickle Hearts fans to back the team fell on deaf ears. Within 10 minutes the grumbles of discontent could be heard from the stand.
“Supporters are shouting to us and it’s a bad atmosphere – but that’s not an excuse,” added Zlamal. “The fans, yeah, they are pushing us a lot. But that’s fans. They can do what they want.
READ MORE: Stephen Robinson frustrated below par Motherwell couldn't trouble Rangers in Fir Park defeat
“They buy tickets and they want to see good football. I understand that they are frustrated. We are frustrated as well. But it’s a tough situation for all of us.”
Hendry’s intervention delivered a first away win in the league for St Johnstone this year. It also served as personal redemption after the striker had been sent off in his previous match against Aberdeen.
"I was just delighted that the manager put me on again because I thought I had killed myself getting suspended,” he admitted. “You could see when I came on all the boys got a lift. I just went on and worked my socks off.
"The gaffer said to us before the game that we had almost gone a year without winning away from home so this result was massive. He said we should give ourselves a pat on the back. But home or away these next games are massive and we need to keep the run going. Hopefully, we can take as many points as we can before the winter break.”
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