'Different route': Major next Hearts manager update as leading candidate ruled out

The Jambos are looking for new head coach after axing Steven Naismith, with the Tynecastle side sitting bottom of the Premiership and still searching for their first win of the season. With a formal tie-up with Brighton owner Tony Bloom imminent, they are using Jamestown Analytics to assist in finding the right candidate.

Hearts’ Europa Conference League campaign begins in Azerbaijan on Thursday evening ahead of their tie against Belarussians Dinamo Minsk and on the eve of the tie, he gave reporters in Baku an update on the club’s managerial hunt.

“Probably non-Scottish, but not 100 per cent on that yet,” was McKinlay’s response if the candidate would be from these shores. “There's a mix after that of people from different countries.

“It's not the same old, same old, to use that phrase. Although I think sometimes that's a bit disrespectful to managers. I've got no issue with some of the managers that are being mentioned, it's just not what we're looking for. We're looking to go down a different route.

“Steven was a young rookie manager. The way the analytics is done is it looks at managers who have improved teams where they've been. On that basis it's a different profile from Steven.”

“We had around about 100, I wouldn't go as far as to say applications, but notes of interest. Some of them are application CVs, some of them are direct from individuals, some of them are through third parties.

“We also have our own views on managers that we've been keeping an eye on or looking at. And now, of course, we have the third part of it, the analytics firm also have a view on managers. So everything's been fed through the analytics. We've got a long shortlist, probably seven or eight.

“And we are now speaking to individuals on that list. Now, what will happen is some of those individuals might drop off. It's just the nature of it. I had one conversation yesterday, which was myself and Graeme Jones with one individual. I've got two more today.

“I'm hoping to have a few more over the weekend, so that we can get to a stage where hopefully next week we can get down to a shortlist, which we'll then take to the board with a recommendation, or allow them to speak to a couple of people and see where we get to.

“Now that makes it sound like it'll be sorted out next week. It's never as straightforward as that. That's just where my head is at the moment. It's bound to drag on a bit. We're bound to hit snags here and there.

“Once you then get down to negotiating contracts, you have some people that are in work, some aren't in work. So it's very difficult here and now to know how long that'll take. But it's progressing.”

McKinlay ruled out one of the bookmakers’ frontrunners in Vikingur boss Arnar Gunnlaugsson. “No, that's not a name that we're looking at,” he added. “Because Aberdeen have got a Scandinavian manager, I think that's flavour of the month. And he's doing brilliantly, so why wouldn't it be?

“I'm not saying we won't end up with a Scandinavian manager. But you've got to be very careful that you don't suddenly go for: ‘Oh well, that seems to be what works this month, so that's what we'll definitely go for.’”