When Romanov picked ‘beaten dog’ Rix – and the Hearts team

When manager George Burley was fired, Heart of Midlothian were unbeaten in their first ten matches of the 2005-2006 season and remained unbeaten in those matches.

Vladmir Romanov made his first shock move while also serving a turbulent Tynecastle regime.

Lothar Matthaus and Ossie Ardiles are said to have expressed interest in the position, while Claudio Ranieri and Bobby Robson were mentioned as potential replacements for the former Ipswich manager.

Romanov instead chose a coach who had previously played in England’s fourth division and had a lot of personal baggage.

“I said if you make this appointment, all sorts of hell will break loose”, remembers Charlie Mann, who worked as a spokesman for Romanov.

However, his boss ignored his request and hired Graham Rix, an England international and former Arsenal captain who had been found guilty of sex abuse.

“He made a safe choice for his strategy”, said former club director Sergejus Fedotovas. It’s similar to having a beaten dog treat you and expect it to behave and love you.

In the wake of Burley’s departure, chief executive Phil Anderton also exited, while chairman George Foulkes and finance director Stewart Fraser stepped down.

Roman Foulkes took his place in Romanov. He made the initial phone call to Rix, who turned around believing it to be Jim Duffy, the wind up.

Rix was offered ten times the salary he had previously received from Oxford United after being summoned to a hotel in London for a second time.

“I had to take it”, he said. “I didn’t think it at the time, but Romanov obviously thought ‘ I can manipulate this boy'”.

After serving half of a 12-month jail sentence in 1999 for indecent assault and unlawful sex with a 15-year-old girl, Rix was expelled from football.

Results under Rix were slightly sluggish, with Celtic taking the lead in the league.

However, former Real Sociedad and Porto striker Edgaras Jankauskas describes himself as an “outstanding coach” while Paul Hartley, a midfielder for Scotland, describes him as an “exceptional coach.”

After the protests and headlines that followed his arrival, Rix felt more at ease in the position as director of football.

Then came the January transfer window.

“He]Romanov] goes ‘ we’re signing him and him and him ‘ and I didn’t know one of them”, Rix recalls. “At that point, I’m thinking ‘ I’m not going to pick them'”.

To increase their market value, newcomers from all over Europe had to receive the game time they desired.

Before a February trip to Tannadice, Rix was asked to show his boss the starting line-up.

“He looked at it and said ‘ nah'”, explains Rix, now 67. Then, he pocketed the team’s name on a piece of paper and gave it to me.

” I went ‘ what if I don’t play that team? ‘ And he said ‘ you not manager’.

Rix complied. Martin Petras and Ludek Straceny replaced Andy Webster and Robbie Neilson. Points were dropped in a 1-1 draw.

Soon after the news was leaked, everyone knew who was selecting the team.

Then Rix rebelled. In the mid-March race to finish second, Rangers arrived in Hearts’ neck.

” We were five points in front with five games remaining, a draw wouldn’t have been the end of the world, “said Rix.

” I showed him]Romanov] the team on Thursday and he scrubbed out Julien Brellier and wrote in Bruno Aguilar.

“Brellier had played all season, not spectacular but he won his tackles. They can’t all be artists, you need a few soldiers in there”.

Rix was aware of the consequences if he chose not to change his preferred team for such a crucial match.

“I told my wife this would be my last game”, he said before Hearts battled to 1-1 draw.

“I was aware that I would receive the sack, but I felt completely justified in doing it.” Brellier got man of the match”, added Rix, who soon got the news he was expecting.

“Roman just called me in and said it wasn’t working out.” We finished second in the Scottish Cup semi-final and second in the league.