Derek McInnes Protes Kepemimpinan Wasit Steven McLean

Manajer Heart of Midlothian, Derek McInnes, melayangkan protes keras terhadap kepemimpinan wasit Steven McLean dalam laga pekan ke-37 Liga Utama Skotlandia di Stadion Fir Park. Protes tersebut dipicu oleh keputusan wasit yang tidak memberikan penalti kepada timnya saat ditahan imbang 1-1 oleh Motherwell.

Hasil imbang tersebut membuat perebutan gelar juara kompetisi domestik melawan Celtic harus ditentukan hingga pertandingan pekan terakhir di Glasgow. Selain kehilangan poin krusial, klub berkaos marun ini juga dipastikan kehilangan dua pilar utama akibat cedera serius pada bagian tendon Achilles.

"Derek McInnes questioned Steven McLean's decision not to award Heart of Midlothian a penalty in the 1-1 draw with Motherwell, as he revealed two key players have suffered Achilles injuries." ujar Derek McInnes, Manajer Heart of Midlothian.

McInnes mengungkapkan bahwa dirinya sudah memprediksi persaingan ini akan berlangsung ketat hingga laga pamungkas. Hearts saat ini berada di posisi kedua klasemen sementara dengan selisih satu poin di bawah Celtic setelah berhasil melewati hadangan Rangers.

"I’ve just assumed Celtic are going to win their game, I’ve had it in my head that we’re going to the last game and I’m prepared for that. Listen, there’s no easy games for anybody, nothing’s straightforward. Motherwell are a more than capable team. They were fully committed against us and I’m sure that’ll be the same again against Celtic. We have been trying to hold off a couple of heavyweights for a long time now. We’ve managed to see off Rangers and we’ve got to try and see off Celtic over the next two games. I think the facts show we’re coping brilliantly. We’ve already broken a club record in terms of points tally and we’ve got a Champions League qualifier already secured, but obviously we want to try and go one better now and win the league." ujar Derek McInnes, Manajer Hearts.

Meskipun demikian, McInnes menegaskan atmosfer di Stadion Tynecastle Park sangat dinantikan oleh para suporter untuk mengakhiri puasa gelar selama 66 tahun. Pihak manajemen sendiri mengimbau pendukung agar tetap tertib dan tidak turun ke lapangan saat laga kandang usai.

"It’s nice to be able to hear ‘Hearts could win the league at Tynecastle,’" kata Derek McInnes, Manajer Hearts.

Guna mengamankan gelar juara, Hearts ditargetkan untuk menyapu bersih poin di pertandingan tersisa. Hal ini menjadi tantangan besar yang jarang ditemui oleh publik sepak bola Glasgow dalam beberapa dekade terakhir.

"I don’t know how many people have been able to say that in their lifetime. The likelihood is we are going to have to win two games or certainly pick up four points." imbuh Derek McInnes, Manajer Hearts.

Kondisi keterbatasan alokasi tiket bagi pendukung Hearts yang hanya mendapat 752 kursi di luar Stadion Celtic Park memicu aksi dari sponsor loveholidays. Kepala Pemasaran loveholidays, Al Murray, menyatakan dukungannya terhadap momentum bersejarah skuad berjuluk mesin marun tersebut.

"We’ve been together with Hearts for the last three seasons, and what the club and its fans are on the brink of achieving is historic. Supporting the underdog is in loveholidays’ DNA, so backing Hearts at a time like this was an easy decision. We’re proudly fully behind the maroon machine." kata Al Murray, Kepala Pemasaran loveholidays.

Sementara itu, persiapan kubu lawan sempat diterpa rumor media BBC yang mengaitkan Manajer Motherwell, Jens Berthel Askou, dengan klub Prancis, Toulouse. Askou langsung memberikan respons singkat untuk meredam spekulasi transfer tersebut.

"I would much rather speak about the game, so the answer will be very short, or as short as I can give it," kata Jens Berthel Askou, Manajer Motherwell.

Askou menilai rumor tersebut muncul sebagai dampak positif atas performa solid yang ditunjukkan oleh anak asuhnya sepanjang musim ini. Dirinya memilih fokus sepenuhnya pada persiapan taktis tim di lapangan.

"There has been many things written about this wonderful football club and what we have achieved, and also speculation and links about me and especially a lot of the many players, which I all take as a positive sign that we are doing something right. That's all I can comment on or want to comment about that." jelas Jens Berthel Askou, Manajer Motherwell.

Bagi skuad Motherwell, pertandingan penentu melawan Celtic di pekan pamungkas memiliki tensi tinggi yang setara dengan partai final. Perasaan ini muncul setelah mereka sebelumnya gagal memanfaatkan peluang di kompetisi piala domestik.

"We are here to play a football game, a very, very important football game for us, and that's really exciting. Look, we missed out on an opportunity to go to Hampden because we weren't there on the night against St Mirren and play a final, then we missed a good opportunity as the draw turned out in the Scottish Cup to maybe go further because everything that could go wrong went wrong at Aberdeen that night. And this is kind of the closest we get to playing a final this season, so we are extremely excited about that." tutur Jens Berthel Askou, Manajer Motherwell.

Seluruh pertandingan krusial pekan ke-37 yang melibatkan tim-tim papan atas dijadwalkan berlangsung serentak pada pukul 20.00 waktu BST.