Tony Bloom reveals Hearts have two transfer plans and as Jambos prepare to box clever against Celtic and Rangers
Tony Bloom knows Hearts will never be able to compete with the financial clout of the Old Firm.
But he says that by having the BEST recruitment in Scotland the Jambos can bridge the gap to Glasgow's big two.
With Dermot Desmond's millions at Celtic and Rangers now backed by the San Francisco 49ers, Bloom accepts they'll always have more cash than Hearts, especially with their worldwide fanbases.
But the Brighton owner - who has pumped £10 million into the Tynecastle club - has still tipped Hearts to disrupt their dominance at the top of the Scottish Premiership.
Bloom is confident Hearts will be champions in the next 10 years and wants to see Derek McInnes' side compete at the highest level in Europe.
With access to Jamestown Analytics, which Bloom believes is unrivalled data, he's convinced they can develop a player trading model that allows them to get closer to Celtic and Rangers.
Just like he's done at Brighton and at Belgian outfit Union St-Gilloise, where he also has a stake.
Bloom said: 'We understand that financially, Hearts is dwarfed by Celtic and Rangers in terms of turnover and their fan base.
'So the only way we can compete is to recruit better (than them).
"The way we can really compete with clubs like that is to recruit the right head coach, really good players - then continue to do it.
'The bottom line is, lots of things go into making a successful club.
'But the main thing is players, the recruitment of players, and players coming through the academy.
'The recruitment Graeme Jones (sporting director) and Derek have done this summer has been exceptionally good and you'll see that over the coming months.
'And it's not the end of it. There are two plans for windows this season then the main one in the summer.
'I have high hopes that we will continue to bring in good players.
'The model is pretty much for every club now. The best players get sold - that's just the ecosystem, not only in Scotland but everywhere outside of Real Madrid and PSG who have unlimited money.
'It's not a problem, that's how we'll continue to improve. It's what happened at Brighton and at USG.
'It has to be about recruitment for us. You need good people, fans, facilities and stuff like that.
'But if you haven't got the players, I can talk to the cows come home but there's no chance of success.'
Through Bloom, Hearts now have access to Jamestown Analytics and have used the recruitment data tool to find the likes of Claudio Braga, Alex Kyziridis, Tomas Bent Magnusson and Pierre Landry Kabore in this transfer window.
At Brighton, the club has become renowned for finding gems, polishing them, before selling them on for a huge profit.
The same idea is being deployed at Union St-Gilloise, who are now Belgian champions.
And Bloom is confident that Jamestown can help Hearts create a similarly successful model.
He said: 'I don't want to talk about other clubs (Old Firm) but all I'm saying is that Hearts' recruitment going forward - with the board following Jamestown Analytics' recommendations - will be very strong.
'I'd be very disappointed if there wasn't a lot of demand over time for Hearts players.
'That's the point of the ecosystem. You need to sell at the right time.
'Then you bring other players through, younger players. That's the way it is at many clubs.
'But Hearts need to do it better and I'm confident we'll do that.
'What we've done at USG has proved it works. Brighton have also come on leaps and bounds as well.
'We're improving the analytics every year. We've seen it at Brighton and at Union in a different country.
'That gives me confidence that the model can work well at Hearts and we'll see success in the future.
"Other clubs are trying to do things and most of the data is commonly available.
'The big advantage Jamestown has is that it's unique data - and the best out there.
'They are exceptionally good at knowing how to use it the right way."
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