Josh McPake hopes to fully kickstart his Hearts career after honest chats with boss Wouter Vrancken. The summer arrival from St Johnstone finally made his debut for the Tynecastle outfit as a second-half substitute in their 6-1 battering by Benfica.
Debut amid heavy defeat
Although it was far from an ideal opening experience, McPake relished getting his opportunity having been left out of the squad for the Champions League qualifier against Sturm Graz. The 24-year-old talked out that disappointment with the gaffer and believes that sort of communication is vital as the decision was explained.
McPake explained the background: “Yeah, obviously that's just between me and the manager. But there were certain reasons between me and him. Of course, that helps any player, I think, having honest conversations with your manager. I think I've had that with almost every manager I've had. There have always been honest conversations.”
Communication key
“I had a good conversation with him the last time, I had a good conversation with him again and I think he's like that with all the boys in the squad. So he's a good communicator with us. I just got my head down, continued to work hard and I was thankful I was in this one. I think that's part and parcel of football. There are ups and downs. You can't get too high and you can't get too low. I knew my chance would come eventually and I'd get some sort of opportunity.”
“I think I got a wee glimpse [in Lisbon] of what I can bring and, hopefully, I'll have more opportunities now as well.” Marco Silva’s Portuguese giants were merciless as they hammered Hearts and Thursday’s return leg against the Lisbon elite is now merely about salvaging some pride after a record-equalling five-goal Euro loss.
Lessons to take
But McPake believes the harsh lessons have to be taken into tomorrow’s Premiership encounter with Dundee United and beyond both personally and as a collective as he reflected: “It's obviously a bitter one, but a good one as well. That's my first game. It's a great stadium to come on in, but the way the game went kind of soured it a wee bit. Obviously they're a top, top side. Everyone knows that. We've obviously learned a lot from them. It was just tough for the boys, but I'm pleased I came on. It was a good experience for myself but, like I say, a sour one for us.”
McPake showed up positively after replacing Calvin Miller and said: “I was just trying to make some sort of positive impact on the game. I wasn't really thinking about anything else at the moment. I wasn't trying to do anything other than that. But I hope he's seen everyone in the squad now and we'll see what happens at the weekend. I'm pleased with coming on and getting that opportunity anyway.”
Positive outlook
“As soon as I get the ball, I'm always thinking positively. I want to run and create chances. I think that’s my game, so that's what I can offer. Hopefully I've shown him a wee glimmer of that and, hopefully, I can continue to show him. I’ve got to kick on.” Vrancken needs several of his stars to also kick on as Hearts have now lost four out of four matches under him shipping a sorry 14 goals in the process.
However, McPake feels the situation can turn quickly as he has belief in the Belgian’s philosophies and explained: “It's been tough for us, but I do believe we can kick on from this. If we just nail down the principles of what the manager wants and what we can do as players, I think we can easily kick on.”
