Ex-Hearts defender Ryan McGowan on Coventry radar

COVENTRY City manager Steven Pressley is weighing up a move for the former Hearts defender Ryan McGowan.

Hearts legend Ryan McGowan is a target for Coventry City. Picture: Ian Rutherford

The 25-year-old is a free agent after leaving Chinese Superleague outfit Shandong Luneng last month and is keen on a return to Britain, with England his preferred destination.

McGowan last week confirmed his intention to “weigh up all my options and make the right decision for me” and Pressley is among a number of suitors for the Australia international.

While Coventry sit 18th in League One, the move could provide a foothold for the Australia international as he looks to craft a career south of the Border.

Darren Murray, a former head of youth development at Hearts, is a coach with the Sky Blues and McGowan is known to hold him in high regard.

Murray helped oversee McGowan’s development from an untested 16-year-old arriving from Adelaide in 2006 to an established first-team star at Tynecastle, and that rapport could be a key factor as McGowan considers his future.

However, McGowan’s resolve to return to the UK is likely to be strongly tested, with further interest from the lucrative Chinese Superleague, where he impressed during his two years at Shandong, even scoring a 95th-minute winner in the Chinese FA Cup final against Jiangsu Sainty last term.

One Shanghai-based outfit is understood to be ready to offer a lucrative two-year deal.