Will Hearts have Liam Boyce back for Dundee United? Robbie Neilson has his say

Hearts are hoping to have Liam Boyce back to spearhead the attack against Dundee United on Saturday.

The Northern Irishman was substituted with a tight calf after an hour of the draw with Dundee two weeks ago and sat out the following two games - another stalemate with St Johnstone and then the loss to Aberdeen - but, having trained this week, his manager says he could be available for selection this weekend.

“Hopefully Boyce will be back for the weekend,” said Robbie Neilson. “He did a bit of training on Wednesday then a bit more on Thursday. Hopefully he will take part in most of it on Friday with a view to being available for the weekend.”

The 30 year-old’s absence has been keenly felt, with the team picking up their first league defeat of the season, and dropping down the Premiership pecking order, without him.

Hearts striker Liam Boyce has been back in training and could be involved against Dundee United on Saturday. Photo by Euan Cherry / SNS Group

His replacement Armand Gnanduillet, whose only goal this season came against Saturday’s opponents Dundee United, has shone only in flashes and lacked the clinical finishing that rendered Boyce one of the pacesetters in the top flight scoring charts, with six goals in 10.

“He’s our top goalscorer,” added Neilson. “He’s one of our better players, but the way we play, whoever comes in should know what they’re doing. It’s the same system, sometimes you need to adapt it, depending on the player, but no club is going to have an exact like-for-like match to bring on that does the same thing.

“The guys that have come in in these positions have done well. Yes, we’ve maybe not got a result, but sometimes it’s not all down to them.”

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.