Hearts head coach Wouter Vrancken will take a break in his Belgian homeland before returning for some rigorous training with his side. (Record - subscription required, external)
Greg Playfair
Fan writer
Despite defeat at Falkirk and a draw at Kilmarnock heading into the extended international break, the bigger picture for Hearts looks encouraging.
A quick Tynecastle health check suggests the patient is in decent shape. Wouter Vrancken has transformed the style of play within months, guided Hearts into the Conference League and the League Cup semi-finals.
With a realistic chance of lifting that trophy for the first time in 63 years, there is far more to savour than sulk about.
We sit third, which is roughly where I expect us to finish, despite an injury list dominated by central midfielders and defenders. It has reached the point where I am trying to track down Vladimir Romanov's spiritual healer, Rima, and persuade her to bring the golden stick to Oriam.
Vrancken is already hugely popular with the support. Winning his first Edinburgh derby in emphatic fashion at Easter Road certainly helped, but it is the direction he has restored that feels most significant. I cannot remember a recent Hearts manager uniting the fanbase quite so quickly.
The break should offer some much-needed breathing space. Getting Oisin McEntee, Malachi Fagan-Walcott and Ageu fit and up to speed would strengthen the squad before a gruelling run of twice-weekly fixtures as the European adventure begins.
Much has been said about the defence's inability to keep clean sheets. That may be a trade-off we have to accept under Vrancken, but midfield is the bigger concern.
Stuart Findlay and Harry Milne have struggled in recent matches, while the Laurent Mendy and Tomas Magnusson pairing does not give the defence enough support when Hearts build from the back.
Then there is Ageu. It is remarkable we still do not really know whether Hearts' record signing is any good. There was excitement around his debut at Livingston last season, but injuries have denied us enough evidence to form a fair judgement.
Nobody should pile pressure on a player who has spent so much of his Hearts career on the treatment table. Equally, if Jamestown Analytics identified him as worthy of a club-record fee, there is a reasonable expectation he can become a midfield mainstay.
His brief cameo at Kilmarnock offered little more than a reminder he exists. The extended break may finally give the Brazilian the chance to build fitness, find rhythm and show why Hearts invested so heavily.
Further forward, Calvin Miller and Josh McPake have made promising starts, while a settled partnership with JJ Williams or James Wilson could help Claudio Braga rediscover last season's form.
Hearts are not yet the finished article, but there is enough quality, momentum and belief to make this feel like the start of something exciting and, after too many false dawns, that is a prospect worth embracing.
Sportscene analyst James McFadden assesses Hearts' week after a defeat by Falkirk and a draw at Kilmarnock.
Image source, SNSHearts head coach Wouter Vrancken is excited about the sense of "control" Brazilian midfielder Ageu can bring to Hearts after the injury-hit record signing made his first appearance of the season.
Coming on against Kilmarnock, the 24-year-old made his first appearance since February, and helped his side seize the upper hand as Stephen Kingsley fired home an 86th-minute equaliser to cancel out Jamie McCart's first-half own goal.
Hearts' midfield stocks have taken a hit with injuries to first-choice picks Blair Spittal and Tom Renaud, as well as Oisin McEntee.
"I'm happy for him, of course, that he gets the minutes again, and I'm happy that when Eddie (Ageu) came in, he could bring something there - we controlled the game, we dominated the game (after he came on)," said the Hearts boss.
"I'm also happy for us that we have an extra player there, because we're pretty thin in players there.
"I think he did well, without being outstanding maybe but he was good in the game. He was decent on the ball and I think he can only get better."
While Hearts have enjoyed a decent start under Vrancken, they head into the prolonged international break on the back of two disappointing results - a loss to Falkirk and a draw with Kilmarnock.
"When you see the second half, I don't think we 'need' the break, because the energy was still there, the push was still there," said the Belgian head coach. "Also the subs that came in brought extra energy, so I'm happy to see that.
"But I think after this run of games, it's also good to clear your head for a few days and to come back with renewed energy because it will be, again, a really cruel schedule."
Hearts fans, we asked for your views on the 1-1 draw with Kilmarnock. Here's a taste of what you had to say...
Maxwell: This new Hearts head coach has a long way to go before he can hope to challenge the two Glasgow teams. He still insists on selecting players who are simply not good enough, or indeed ever will be. It's really cringe to watch every team we play playing long-ball football and getting results. Knowing how ruthless Tony Bloom can be, I hope he gets the message soon!
Sam: Predictable. But all season we've looked for Hearts to score goals even although they leak one or two. The real issue is the chances missed.
Ian: Another goal conceded from a long ball over the top. What are they doing in training to eradicate this obvious problem? Another league match away from home (outside of Edinburgh) that we've failed to win. Third to sixth place a likely outcome in the league come May.
Jim: Difficult match to assess, Hearts on the the wrong end again of officials not being clear on the rules regards the first 'goal'. More defensive misunderstandings, another two points dropped. I am wondering if Claudio Braga justifies his regular place, he seems to be operating far below last season's performance levels.
Five points dropped within a week against struggling teams is not a Championship-level performance, it probably cost us the title last season when we failed to beat the bottom two clubs - are we to have a repeat this season?
Steve: Again the manager's defensive strategy is naive, only Stephen Kingsley looked a top defender, Tomas Magnusson and Laurent Mendy look ponderous. One point out of six - Falkirk win their first game of the season, and Kilmarnock bottom of the league. Wouter Vrancken is embarrassing.
Chris: Another game, another defensive calamity and I've never been happier to get to an international break. Fully back the manager's decision to remove Stuart Findlay early, he can't pass the ball and his confidence is gone - Kingsley was excellent when moved central.
Steve S: Hapless in defence and if we could have subbed both central defenders after 30 minutes, I'm sure we would have. Kingsley steadied the ship. Mendy in the middle was hiding from the ball and should have been hooked as well. JJ Williams cost us again with simple misses, as he did against Falkirk.
Stephen Kingsley's 85th-minute strike denied Kilmarnock a debut home Scottish Premiership win of the season - but Hearts' search for a first league victory outside Edinburgh since January goes on.
Read the full match report here
Have your say on the game via this link
Image source, SNSHearts head coach Wouter Vrancken is asked by Premier Sports what explanation he has received from the referee on Laurent Mendy's disallowed goal.
"None," he said.
"I cannot blame the referee because it's a VAR decision. They were told that the goalscorer made a handball but the VAR have to see the defender puts it in the net. For me it's a big decision to make when it's so clear. It affects the game.
"We were not efficient enough in the box. We made a big mistake [for the goal]. In the second half we tried to change things and i thought we were good. We created a lot of chances but we had to score more today. One issue for today was efficiency.
"It's not about defensive performance it was more like the offensive performance of the defence. We needed someone with more guts and initiative on the ball. We had to change things otherwise it was difficult to break that block. We created more chances in the second half."
On whether he's disappointed not to win the game given the late chances.
"Yeah for sure," Vrancken added.
"When you lose, like at Falkirk on Tuesday, you can accept those things because you were so bad, the opponent was better, these things happen in sport.
"But today as well as the first game at Aberdeen, you have to be more efficient because I think we had a lot of chances to win it."
Image source, SNSKilmarnock will be without the suspended Djenairo Daniels and injured Robbie Deas (ankle), while on-loan defender MJ Kamson-Kamara is unable to face his parent club.
Hearts trio Ageu, Malachi Fagan-Walcott and Finlay Pollock are pushing for a return to the squad following long-term lay-offs, while Tomas Magnusson and Oisin McEntee face late fitness checks.
Craig Halkett (Achilles), Blair Spittal (shin) and Tom Renaud (ankle) are out long-term.
Kilmarnock have lost all three of their home league games this season, last losing four in a row in the Scottish Premiership in August 2017, and last doing so within a single campaign in May 2015.
Hearts have scored a league-high four goals from set-pieces (excluding penalties) in the Premiership this season, while Kilmarnock have conceded the most from non-penalty set-pieces (5).
After their 1-0 victory in March, Kilmarnock are looking for back-to-back home wins over Hearts in the league for the first time since March 2014.
Hearts' past six away league games against Kilmarnock have featured just seven goals in total (2 Kilmarnock, 5 Hearts), with at least one side failing to score in all six of those meetings.
Hearts have only won twice in their past 10 away league matches (D2 L6), both coming at rivals Hibernian (2-1 in April, 3-1 in September).
Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter
Image source, SNSJames Wilson is "loving it" after putting a difficult start to the season behind him to win his place back not only in Hearts' starting line-up but also in the Scotland squad.
The 19-year striker, who already has two Scotland caps, was named in new head coach Sebastien Pocognoli's first squad earlier this week having missed out on this summer's World Cup finals.
"It's been a while actually since I was properly in the last one, it was last summer, so I'm looking forward to being back around the group," Wilson said.
He was invited to train with the squad and played in the final warm-up game against Curacao, which came after he finished last season on loan to Tottenham Hotspur's youth team.
"I'm still young, I'm still learning and I felt it was the biggest benefit for me at the time to go and do that," he said.
Wilson had to be patient to break into the starting line-up under Hearts' new head coach, Wouter Vrancken, but has now scored five goals in his latest seven games.
"It's gone pretty well for me," he added. "In my mind, it didn't start terribly well personally for me because I wasn't playing and I was working hard.
"I was just doing what I needed to do in the gym, on the training pitch and just trying to show that I could be part of the squad.
"I was working hard over the summer, working hard down at Spurs to kind of put myself in the best position now to be where I am."
Record signing Ageu is in contention for a return to the Heart of Midlothian squad for the first time since February this weekend against Kilmarnock as the 24-year-old midfielder continues his recovery from injury. (Hearts Standard, external)
Injury-hit Hearts midfielder Finlay Pollock is nearing a comeback to competitive football after the 22-year-old's 18-month absence. (Edinburgh Evening News, external)
Read Friday's Scottish Gossip in full.
Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter
Image source, SNSDavid Gray "will bounce back and find a good job", derby rival Wouter Vrancken has predicted after the Scottish head coach's dismissal by Hibernian on Wednesday.
The Hearts boss played his part in heaping pressure on the former Hibs captain with a 3-1 win at Easter Road in this month's Edinburgh derby.
But the Belgian expressed sympathy for Gray, who had steered his side to a Premier Sports Cup semi-final against Hearts but whose near two-and-a-half years in charge ended with his side currently ninth in the Scottish Premiership, six places below their city rivals.
"The sympathy I feel is also because, when you're in the job, you know how hard it is, and how difficult the situations can be," Vrancken said.
"I know how hard it is to be in the job. I'm always sad to see a colleague losing his job."
Hibs will likely have a new permanent head coach in time for the meeting at Hampden on Sunday, 1 November.
However, Vrancken's full focus is on recovering from his own side's 2-1 defeat at Falkirk Stadium when they face a Kilmarnock side on Saturday whose 1-0 win at Easter Road was the final straw for Gray.
He says it would be "extra positive" to get back to winning ways just in time for the three-week international break.
"We analysed the game and we showed it to the players, we discussed it with the players, and they are, of course, very self-aware about the things that happened," he added.
"It was not just out of possession we didn't play our best game, but in possession was, I think, the worst game we played.
"We didn't push the opponent in decision-making and defensively then it's easy to defend and that's not how we want to play."
Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter
Image source, SNSHearts head coach Wouter Vrancken has been talking to the media as he prepares for Saturday's trip to Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premiership.
Here are the key points:
Vrancken has sympathy for Hibs counterpart David Gray after the Scot was sacked on Wednesday but suggests "he will bounce back".
The Belgian-born coach says he knows how hard the job is and it's always "sad when a colleague loses his job".
The Hearts boss wants Harry Milne not to be too hard on himself as he struggles for form, saying: "The thing is that Harry is the guy who gives himself the most criticism. The most important thing with him is that the pressure he puts on himself maybe loosens up a bit so that he finds joy in things again and grows to his level."
Vrancken says the players have watched back the game against Falkirk on Tuesday and "are self aware" of where they got it wrong in the 2-1 defeat.
He reiterated the "presents" given to Falkirk were unacceptable and "it's a long way to Christmas and they didn't have to do it".
Vrancken says, as a team, Hearts have looked at the "strengths and weaknesses" of Kilmarnock and it's important to conclude this part of the season on a high.
Midfielder Tomas Magnusson should be available after missing the Falkirk game through illness, with utility man Oisen McEntee also possibly making a return.
Image source, SNSJosh McPake believes he has "more to give" after being called up to the Scotland squad.
The Hearts winger, 25, is on the verge of his first senior international appearance after being called up for a quartet of Nations League matches by new head coach Sebastien Pocognoli.
McPake set up fellow call-up James Wilson's equaliser in Tuesday's 2-1 defeat by Falkirk for his sixth assist of the season, while he has scored twice.
"I'm delighted to be involved, but I don't want to get too far ahead of myself," said McPake, who dropped into the part-time ranks with Stirling Albion in early 2024 after being released by Rangers.
"I'm still very new at the club, so it wasn't something that was in my thoughts. I believed that if I performed well for Hearts, opportunities might come.
"I wouldn't change my journey for anything. Personally, I feel I needed those experiences to become the player I am now. There were a lot of setbacks, but going down the levels, proving myself and working my way back up taught me a lot.
"It's been a mad few years but I've loved every part of it. I don't want to stop here. I feel I've still got more to give and I'll continue working hard to show what I can do."
Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter
Defeat at Falkirk may have come as a surprise to some, but the Hearts hierarchy always knew there would be a few bumps in the road.
The manner of the loss, however, should act as a wake-up call to the club.
The success of recent weeks has been built on hard work and nobody is denying the players' efforts. But the performance at Falkirk was evidence that more will be required if the club are to achieve their goals this season.
Wouter Vrancken said post-match his players "didn't match the energy" of the Falkirk team and that the two goals conceded were "presents".
Hearts are not yet a good enough team to afford to be second best in energy and intensity - and they certainly should not be handing out gifts.
The team have an opportunity to respond quickly with another road trip, this time to Kilmarnock, before a lengthy international break.
That upcoming hiatus will allow Hearts an to take stock of where they are, recharge and prepare properly for a hugely busy period between October and December.
There is plenty for Hearts to look forward to, with European adventures continuing and a League Cup semi-final against rivals Hibernian.
The defeat at Falkirk will be painful, but the important thing is how Hearts respond.
Highlights: Falkirk 2-1 Hearts
We asked for your views after Hearts' four-game winning run was halted with a 2-1 defeat at Falkirk.
Here are some of your comments:
Samantha: The lack of competition for places has left us a breeding ground of incompetence. As children we are taught never to pass the ball across your box - Harry Milne is miles off the pace. If we can get a result against Killie and limp into the international break I'd call that a job well done.
Eric: We are a shambles at the back and hanging on for dear life in the middle of the park so it was only a matter of time before our luck ran out. JJ Williams has to score his chance, no two ways about it. We deserved nothing though. Falkirk were average, we were abysmal.
Jim: Difficult to be too critical of a poor Hearts performance after such a good run of results and a growing injury list to important players. But we have known about our defensive problems since the season started. Tuesday night's defensive performance was unacceptable by any measure. We will have no need of the silverware polish this season if we continue to gift goals to the opposition.
Euan: Embarrassing, dreadful, boring, mentally weak. Lack of leaders is incredible and it's only September. Not played Celtic Rangers yet and already lost two games. Worrying days ahead looking at games until Christmas with that group of players.
Jim: John McGlnyn was spot on about our weakness at the back - how many times did we get caught out? Surely if it wasn't working you have a plan B, but we clearly didn't or did we assume Falkirk would just roll over? Very poor performance, a wake-up call.
Steve: A result that was coming, against a side who had not won in their last five. It's naive to keep pushing forward and leave a very average defence exposed. Their first goal summed it up. Two central defenders holding the defensive line while Milne is way out of position upfield. If the manager doesn't address this imbalance we'll win nothing this season and struggle to finish third.
Highlights: Falkirk 2-1 Hearts
Watch the best of the action as Falkirk secure their first Scottish Premiership win of the season with a 2-1 home victory over Hearts. (Available to UK users only)
