Accra Hearts of Oak have officially appointed Slavko Matic as their permanent manager on a two-year contract.
Despite the announcement long being expected, it finally ends once and for all the debate over who the club's next manager will be. The former Novi Pazar and Septemvri Sofia boss' appointment at Hearts have left many fans feeling underwhelmed, and pessimistic about their survival chances.
But this is still just the beginning and there are things that the 46-year-old Serbian gaffer must do to ensure his reign at Hearts becomes a success.
A Cohesive Execution of His System
Following the departure of Samuel Boadu, a man who famously took the flack for his side's failings at the start of the season. That was true, with Boadu opting to let go some senior players who weren't performing up to their standards. What was pointless though, was when the players coming in to fill those slots were incapable of executing his game plan.
The players were not without fault, but the system in place was flawed from the start.
What Matic must do is implement his own methods but with the right personnel and in the right manner. He must be bold enough to leave players out who aren't adapting to his system, performing well in training, as well as in matches, but ensure he doesn't sacrifice quality with the XI on the pitch. Something Samuel Boadu failed to do.
He has to get his points across, but in the right way. He cannot waver from his philosophy, but he has to ensure the players believe that is it the right philosophy.
Field players in their best – or at least correct – positions
There are many reasons why Boadu’s tenure felt aimless and many strange tactical decisions that suggest he was out of ideas, but chief among them was his odd team selections.
This first point should be easy enough to fix: Matic must avoid the pitfall of putting square pegs in round holes, and no more shoving as many forwards onto the pitch as possible. Hearts need basic organisation and a clear strategy, something that Matic will surely work towards. His previous teams were consistent in playing short-passing aesthetic football.
Preach patience and lower the club’s expectations
That cycle has to end now. An important part of Matic’s job will be in interviews and press conferences, in which he must highlight the need for patience as he embarks on this new project. It will take time for his ideas to take hold, but it will be worth it: hope of a short spike of form is a deeply flawed plan. The Hearts fans, management and the board need to give Slavko Matic time to rebuild the club organically.
As head coach, Matic’s job is to dampen expectations by explaining the intricacies of the project, building a strong relationship with fans that allows for gradual improvements to be made without the instant pressure of results.
Establish Leaders
To ensure that this awareness and discipline is maintained on the pitch during the big games, Hearts require leaders to put this approach into practice. If one player is caught unaware and out of position, there must be another nearby ready to shout, give instructions and pull his side back into shape.
Matic can only direct so much from the touchline and players like Eric Esso must step up to help lead from the engine room. Mohammed Alhassan is known to be vocal on the pitch, and must assume greater leadership and responsibility in ensuring that the defence remains tight a unit.
By: Godfred Budu
