Blackpool legend shares views on ex-head coach's comments after taking Hearts job

I always got on really well with Neil, I think he’s a fantastic coach who’s very knowledgeable about football, I wish him all the best.

He did a fantastic job the first time around with Blackpool, and whatever reason it didn’t work out the second - it can happen.

They just missed out on the play-offs with a team that had just come down, and there had been a lot of changes at the club. It’s difficult for a manager to come in and make an impact quickly when everything has been tipped on its head.

They weren’t fighting relegation by any means, and on their day they were very good, but they didn’t have the same consistency as last time.

They had it at home, but away it was pretty much chalk and cheese. I’m sure he’s learnt lessons from that, and I’m sure he’ll use that knowledge to great effect.

You have to defend your own record because everyone’s always on the attack, it’s an extremely difficult job.

Some managers take a bit of time out after being sacked, and some want to jump straight back in. He’s got this opportunity and he feels it’s the right job for him.

He’s a young manager. He’s had a bit of a setback in his career, but all managers do. Football is a results business, one minute it can be going well, and the next you’re under pressure. It’s a cutthroat business.

Any manager who goes into a club will know what after a couple of defeats they could be out of a job.

If he can go up there and do well then he’ll be absolutely adored. It’s a competitive league where you have Celtic and Rangers who are just out in front because they’re world famous clubs - they’ve got that global pull.

It’s unbelievably difficult for a manager on the resources at some of the other teams to make a dent on the top two.

It’ll be good for Neil to go away and challenge himself, it’s the same as a player. He’ll be a lot more knowledgeable now after his second spell with Blackpool than he was when he left the first time.

He’s been at Aston Villa under Steven Gerrard and has seen how the Premier League is. He’s been under Jurgen Klopp in the youth team at Liverpool. All these things are feathers in his bow.

Hearts is a big club, and their derby with Hibernian is probably the second biggest after the Glasgow one.

Hearts fans will only be as sceptical as Blackpool fans were when Steve Bruce got the job, before he won his first four and got manager of the month after being out of the game for so long.

Hopefully he can have a similar start, and that might turn the tide for him, but no one knows until he’s got his feet under the desk.

What I can say in Neil Critchley’s defence is, I’ve never spoken to a player who had a bad word to say about him, which is very unusual. He’s a genuine bloke who tries to improve you.