Southampton, Middlesbrough and Hull City were linked with Lawrence Shankland in January and now, Hearts boss Steven Naismith has confirmed a sale will be considered this summer.
Southampton, Middlesbrough and Hull City were among the clubs said to be eyeing Scottish talisman Shankland in the January window.
A move never came to fruition for the striker, and he’s maintained a starring role at Tynecastle since. Across all competitions, Shankland has notched 28 goals and eight assists in 44 games this season.
The 28-year-old has been one of Scotland’s standout scorers in recent seasons, also enjoying fruitful stints with Ayr United and Dundee United.
Now though, as he prepares to enter the last 12 months of his deal, it looks as though Hearts are willing to listen to offers.
Manager Steven Naismith explained to the Edinburgh Evening News that they will avoid previous errors in losing key assets for nothing and will consider selling Shankland this summer if the right bid comes in.
The report adds interest remains from England, Scotland and abroad. Previous admirers Southampton, Middlesbrough and Hull City are not mentioned at this stage, nor is any club.
Naismith said:
He has a year left and the club will have a decision to make in terms of the bigger picture. We need to look ahead. We can’t have situations every year like Josh Ginnelly, where he comes to the end of his contract and we can’t do anything about it.
“You have got to value him: What’s the worth of keeping a player for that last year? Is there an offer there? Does he want to sign a new contract? All these factors come in.“There is a real calmness within the club about it all. There is an understanding of all the variations that can happen.
“One thing is for sure, as long as Shanks is here he will give one 100 per cent and he will lead by example as he has done all season.”
Leave a Reply