Orestis Kiomourtzoglou had to wait to make his Hearts debut until after he was granted a visa, but insists it was a blessing in disguise.
The midfielder penned a three-year deal last month and was presented to fans before the 3-2 Premiership win over St Johnstone. However, he didn’t pull on the maroon strip for the first time until 18 September, starting in the Jambos’ 3-0 win over Motherwell at Fir Park. Goals from Lawrence Shankland and Alan Forrest made it a perfect start for “Kio” as the Tynecastle side returned to winning ways.
That came after he watched games against Livingston, Kilmarnock, Istanbul Basaksehir and RFS from the stands before finally making his bow at Fir Park. Being forced to sit on the sidelines was frustrating for the 24-year-old, but it did give him a chance to get used to how Robbie Neilson’s style - and the accents in the dressing room.
“For sure, now I know all the names!” he said. “I know how we want to play, how the system is and our purposes, so it was better for me to have a little bit more time. But waiting for the visa was not a nice feeling.”
Next on the list is a first appearance at Tynecastle. That could come when Rangers visit on Saturday lunchtime. “For me, it’s the first home match,” Kiomourtzoglou said. “Already I’ve been three times in the stadium but not on the pitch, so I’m looking forward to it. Everybody wants to play against the best teams and Rangers are one of those. But we’re also quite good!
“They have to come to us and think we have quite a good chance of winning the game. The matches I’ve watched from the stands, I’ve seen the fans screaming for every tackle, every time we win the ball and every shot and I can't wait to feel it myself on the pitch.”
Off the pitch, Kiomourtzoglou is still adapting to life in Edinburgh. He’s managed to explore a bit, but a lack of transportation means not as much as he would have liked. He explained: “It’s a little bit difficult for me because I don’t have a car at the moment. But I live near to the city so on my days off I've been walking a lot! I’ve seen a few places but I need a little bit more time because it’s quite a big city.
“When you're in the dressing room, the guys are talking fast and using slang. When two Scottish guys are talking to each other, it’s a little bit difficult for me! But I join in. When I first talked to the coach and the guys I asked: ‘Please, slow down so I understand everything!’ But I have to get used to it and after a couple of months, I’ll get it.”
Teammates Craig Gordon, Stephen Kingsley and Barrie McKay all represented Scotland in midweek. Kiomourtzoglou is a German Under 21 international and still harbours ambitions to win a full senior cap, but not necessarily with Die Mannschaft.
“When I played in the Netherlands, we had two or three international players.,” he said.”For sure, this is also my goal. Germany is maybe a bit heavy for me, but perhaps for Greece. My father is Greek but my mother is completely German, so I’m half-and-half.
“I played Under 21s for Germany and the national coach for Greece was a Dutch guy. They also wanted me but at this moment, I didn’t have a passport and it’s quite difficult to get one. But now I have everything and if the chance comes, I’m open for it. Hearts is a big club and we’re playing in Europe as well. So if I play a few good games, then who knows what will happen?”
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