Neil Critchley rigorously defends Hearts credentials against pessimism as he reveals his prime numbers

An awful lot has been written about data and analytics around Hearts in the last month.

But the only stats that matter right now are the ones staring the Jambos in the face at the bottom of the table - zero wins and just two points from eight games. Jamestown Analytics is the Tony Bloom-linked tool that produced Neil Critchley’s name as the best candidate - according to CEO Andrew McKinlay - to sort out that mess that ultimately cost Steven Naismith his job last month.

Yet the numbers around the 45-year-old are hardly encouraging either given he has been sacked from his last two jobs at Blackpool and QPR in the space of under two years. He lasted just 12 games at Loftus Road. It’s a set of circumstances that sees Critchley, unveiled at Tynecastle on Tuesday, arrive in the job with a lukewarm reception from punters. And that’s putting it politely.

But the mildly spoken Englishman has promised doubters he is the real deal. He does have one promotion on his CV from his first spell as boss at Blackpool.

More than that though, he insists he’s a better manager for the trials and tribulations of his previous jobs. And he is in no doubt he can lead Hearts out of their hell. Critchley said: “Yeah, I believe I am otherwise I wouldn't be sitting here. I understand that whoever's sitting here, it always divides opinion. I can only control what I can control.

“I promise the Hearts supporters that I give them everything I've got every single day to improve this football club. And I'm fully confident that I can do that and I'll be the man to get us out of the situation that we're in right now.

“When you've got a big supporter base like we have, then some people will agree, some people will be sitting on a fence and let's give