Hearts poised to appoint new manager as two new signings arrive and released player snapped up

The 47-year-old arrived in Edinburgh on Wednesday and is expected to complete formalities before meeting the first-team squad at Riccarton on Thursday ahead of his official unveiling.

Vrancken is bringing two fellow Belgians with him to work as his assistants in Scotland. Tim Smolders, 45, and 35-year-old Cederique Tulleners are the men set to join his coaching staff and complete the new-look Hearts management team. After former head coach Derek McInnes took his assistants, Paul Sheerin and Alan Archibald, with him to Rangers, Vrancken is now ready to pick up the reins in Gorgie.

He was identified by Hearts’ recruitment partner, Jamestown Analytics, before being formally interviewed along with Dutch coach René Hake and fellow Belgian Maarten Martens. The Tynecastle sporting director Graeme Jones and club chairman Calum Paterson conducted interviews and Vrancken became their first choice.

He has moved quickly to enlist Smolders and Tulleners to work with him. Smolders left his job as a coach at French club Stade de Reims last month having been assistant to Karel Geraerts. He previously worked as assistant coach at German club Schalke and Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise - one of the clubs Hearts shareholder Tony Bloom holds a stake in. Smolders also coached in the Club Brugge youth academy and worked with Belgium’s under-19 international squad.

Tulleners has a varied background having coached Cercle Brugge’s B team and worked as an assistant with the Lithuania under-19 and under-21 teams. Prior to those roles, he coached Beerschot’s under-23s and managed Al-Hilal United in Dubai. He also worked in China, managing Xiamen Nanhu and as assistant at Shenzhen Peng City.

Vrancken built a reputation in Belgium as a coach capable of overachieving. His teams play with energy and aggression and he likes high-tempo play with a high press on opponents. Vrancken won the Belgian Cup with Mechelen in 2019 and guided Genk to a runners-up place in the Belgian top flight in 2023 - missing out on the title in the dying seconds against Royal Antwerp.

After an impressive season with Sint-Truiden last year, in which he guided them to third place and European qualification and was named Coach of the Year, he is now preparing for pastures new. He had reported interest from Anderlecht, Burnley and Lorient, plus Bulgarian side Ludogorets, but now has the chance to manage Hearts.

His first competitive game in charge will be the Champions League second qualifying round first leg away to Sturm Graz on July 21. The return leg is a week later at Tynecastle Park and Vrancken will want to get off to a strong start. Having only previously managed in his homeland, this will be his first venture abroad as a head coach. Players return to Riccarton on Thursday for two days of testing before flying to Spain next week for a warm-weather training camp.

French duo sign for Hearts

Two new signings were also announced by Hearts on Wednesday with the arrivals of French duo Sabri Guendouz and Tom Renaud taking the number of new recruits at Tynecastle thus far this summer to seven.

Guendouz completed an £850,000 transfer from the Belgian club Beerschot and has signed a three-year contract. In a statement confirming his arrival, Hearts described the 26-year-old as an "exciting, direct attacker" while the player told Hearts TV: “This is a big step in my small career but I’m not scared. I am very confident in myself and the club and I’m very ready for this step.”

Renaud, meanwhile, agreed a move to Edinburgh back in April as he prepared to leave the French third division side Versailles. With his contract there now expired, the 25-year-old has signed a four-year deal to take his place in the new-look Hearts squad.

He joins wingers Josh McPake and Calvin Miller, defenders MJ Kamson-Kamara and Malachi Fagan-Walcott, plus forwards Amadou Ba-Sy and Guendouz as fresh faces for season 2026/27.

Renaud is a multitalented holding midfielder with aggression, technical nous and a varied passing range. He is 6ft tall with an athletic frame. He is adept at playing diagonal passes out to wide players and is not shy when it comes to tackles and headers. He made 30 appearances for Versailles this season but, after playing in France’s Championnat National and other lower divisions, he is keen to test himself at a higher level.

Elsewhere, Falkirk have re-signed Lewis Neilson on a two-year deal.

The 23-year-old defender joins from Hearts after spending the final year of his Tynecastle contract on loan with the Bairns.

Manager John McGlynn said: “At 23, he’s the perfect age, and we know he has a little bit of improving to do, but the raw material is there. He’s one of the quickest centre-backs I’ve ever worked with and he’s good on the ball.

“There’s still some fine-tuning to be done with Lewis but, overall, he’s a very good professional and he’s a joy to work with.”