Neil Critchley WILL talk to Kenneth Vargas about his comments during the international. break – just as soon as he’s back in the country.
The Costa Rican angered Hearts fans by claiming that he wanted to play at a higher level than Scottish football and that there were teams interested in signing him in January. Peeved punters were quick to point out that gilt edged chances Vargas has missed this season has contributed to them sitting second bottom of the Premiership table, and that maybe he should start performing at the level he’s at before looking to talk himself into a move.
Vargas then backtracked, insisting that his quotes had been taken out of context, despite seeming very clear in his initial interview that he was keen to leave. Critchley is planning to sit down with the forward to get an explanation, although delays to his return flight mean he isn’t actually back in the Scottish capital yet ahead of Saturday night’s clash with Celtic.
“I haven’t had a chance to speak to him yet as there’s been a complication with his return flight, so he’s not yet back in the country,” explained the Tynecastle boss. “When he does return, then I will be speaking to him, obviously.
“I don’t want to go into too much detail until I’ve spoken to him one-to-one, face-to-face, because I think that would be wrong. I read his initial comments, but then I read his response to his own comments and that’s something that a club and myself will deal with internally.”
Vargas claims his contract includes a minimum fee release clause after penning a new five-year deal last summer in making his move from Herediano CS a permanent one. But Critchley says he’s not aware of any discussions over a potential January exit for Vargas when he put pen to paper.
“Not as far as I’m aware,” he said. “Kenny signed a long-term contract in the summer so I know he loved being here. I know he’s fully committed to being here. He has ambition and he should never suppress ambition but my findings of Kenny so far is that he’s a boy who wants to learn and get better.
“He has things he needs to improve. The best talking you can do is on the pitch.”
As for whether Vargas is in his plans for the showdown with the champions, Critchley admitted: “He still has a chance of being involved this weekend.”