Manager McInnes to sit out Kilmarnock v Hearts

Derek McInnes will not be in charge of Kilmarnock for Sunday's match against Hearts, with the manager poised to move from the Ayrshire club to their Scottish Premiership rivals.

The 53-year-old had said on Tuesday that he expected to be in the dugout for the final two games of the season despite the clubs having agreed a compensation deal for his summer switch.

But, following Wednesday's 3-0 defeat away to Motherwell, Kilmarnock announced that McInnes and his staff would not lead the team at the weekend.

"It has been agreed between our board of directors, Derek McInnes and his staff that the best approach would be if they were not in charge for the final match of the season," a statement read.

McInnes had been "transparent" before the match, revealing that talks were still ongoing to finalise his move to Tynecastle, but it was assistant Paul Sheerin who was sent out to address the media after the loss at Fir Park.

However, Kilmarnock now say Sheerin and coach Alan Archibald will also not be involved in Sunday's game against Hearts, with Chris Burke and Craig Clark taking charage of the team.

McInnes is expected to formally succeed Neil Critchley, who was sacked as head coach after just six months, next week.

"I'm led to believe that the clubs agreed terms yesterday," McInnes said earlier this week. "Discussions are ongoing from that."

He said, having spoken to Kilmarnock majority shareholder Billy Bowie, "my focus is fully on finishing this season with Kilmarnock".

McInnes spoke of his "strong relationship" with Bowie, saying: "It's important to me that, if and when I leave Kilmarnock, I'll still be able to shake his hand, have a drink and talk as openly as we do now."

He also pointed out that he has "had opportunities, and good opportunities, to leave Kilmarnock" previously.

McInnes has been in charge at Rugby Park since 2022 and last season guided the Ayrshire side into Europe by finishing fourth.

His managerial career began when he took St Johnstone into the top flight in 2009 and, after a brief stint at Bristol City, he had seven years in Aberdeen, with whom he never finished lower than fourth and won the League Cup in 2014.

The former midfielder left Pittodrie in 2021 and took charge of Kilmarnock the following January, leading them to promotion to the top flight and keeping them in it comfortably since then.

Motherwell having ended Kilmarnock's three-match winning run, McInnes is poised to end his spell in Ayrshire with his side having finished ninth this season, two places below Hearts.