"Walter went back..."

And so Jim Jefferies (plus loyal sidekick Billy Brown, of course) is back at Tynecastle, citing Walter Smith's successful second stint at Rangers as reason enough to go back to Hearts for a second time.

It's no great surprise that Csaba Laszlo has gone: he's been acting like he wanted the sack for months. He might have talked himself out of compensation, though.

The club itself was typically overblown about Jefferies' return (the official confirmation of a new manager is not a "world exclusive", you pretentious morons, it's an announcement), probably guessing that it will appease the fans, reminding them of happier times.

The fans do seem appeased. Bored with Csaba Laszlo's boring tactics and public moaning, the appointment of Jefferies has been met largely positively. If they are hoping for a return to 1998, though, the Jambos are living in dreamland.

For one thing, Hearts don't spend money the way they used to. And secondly, Jefferies won't have complete control over the squad - for the same reason that none of his recent predecessors have done. Whatever Romanov is up to, it doesn't include allowing his first team coach total authority over the budget.

So, Jefferies will be required to do the best out of the resources given to him - which will probably be a mix of SPL pros plus young players from the academy. There's speculation that Romanov may sanction a move for Kevin Kyle, to give a Scottish spine to the team. His first job will be to try and win Tuesday's semi-final against St Mirren to get through to the League Cup Final.

Meanwhile the club itself will continue in its zombie existence. Eventually, Jefferies will fall out with Romanov and be removed, and the club will be back in the same position - burdened by huge debts, with an uncertain future ahead of it.

If Jefferies thinks his time at the helm will be any different, he's deluding himself. We've had several years to get used to Vladimir Romanov, and we all know the story by now.