Steven Naismith insisted third place IS the target for Hearts just days after claiming it wasn’t “the be all and end all”.
But the cautious caretaker refused to make any guarantees and warned that looking too far ahead would see the freefalling Jambos “doomed to fail”. Naismith moved to set the record straight after his comments just days after replacing axed Robbie Neilson caused alarm among the club’s supporters.
The 36-year-old opened his account with a 1-0 derby defeat to Hibs on Sunday - a fifth straight league loss for the side who have seen a 10-point lead over Aberdeen turn into a five-point deficit. But it was his pre-match statement which raised eyebrows and flew in the face of Tynecastle chief executive Andrew McKinlay who days earlier said sacking Neilson with seven games to go gave the club a better opportunity of rescuing third spot and the accompanying £5m Euro windfall.
