As the Phobian club intensifies the search for a substantive coach to lead the club next season, the man who led Bechem to MTN FA Cup glory last month has emerged as the frontrunner for the top job, with former Medeama SC coach, Tom Strand, also in contention for the vacant position, according to a source close to the Hearts management.

The source indicated that both Zacharias and Swedish trainer Strand are the leading candidates among 30 applicants for the job, with the Portuguese openly declaring his readiness to abandon the FA Cup winners for the high-profile job of leading the Phobians.

Following the exit of Japanese-American coach Kenichi Yatsuhashi last June, the Phobians top job has been a high risk position with Portuguese Sergio Traguil taking charge of the first team for only two months after which he was demoted to the club’s youth side Auroras, to make way for former Hearts star Yaw Preko, who was assistant to both Yatsuhashi and Traguil.

However, a member of the Hearts board of directors, who demanded anonymity, said the board was treading cautiously to decide whether or not to confirm Preko as the substantive coach next season.

He noted that following their experience with their last two expatriate coaches, both the board and management were weighing their options very carefully before deciding on another foreign coach.