Hearts boss admits Lawrence Shankland interest amid Rangers link as striker nets St Mirren double

Scotland striker takes season's tally to 16 with double in win over St Mirren

Hearts manager Steven Naismith has revealed that there has already been interest in his free-scoring striker Lawrence Shankland. The Hearts captain was on target again, scoring two goals as the Gorgie side defeated St Mirren 2-0 to move clear in third spot.

With 10 goals in 11 games for the Tynecastle outfit, it increased his overall tally for the season to 16 for club and country and underlined just how attractive a signing option he could be for clubs in the January transfer window, with rumoured links to Premiership rivals Rangers, among others, refusing to go away.

“I think there is already interest in him,” said the Hearts manager. “There is going to be. When you have got players playing at the top of their game there is going to be interest. Every club in Scotland are in the same category where we are not at the elite, top level where you can just push away anyone being interested in your players – but that doesn’t change anything.

Lawrence Shankland celebrates after scoring his second goal in Hearts' 2-0 win over St Mirren .Photo by Paul Devlin / SNS Group

“We are a club that’s in a really good situation. We are progressive and we want to get better as a business, better as a football squad – and having Shanks is that. So no, everyone is comfortable. The pleasing aspect is that he is doing so well. It’s credit to the team, credit to Shanks and credit to us all as a group. It is understandable that there is going to be interest when you are doing well.”

While the first one was a run of the mill Shankland finish, the second was a superb goal for the man who has now scored 43 goals in his season and a half at the club.

“The first one – we have probably had a bit of credit for our set pieces for and against, and that’s another one. We have bodies in the right place for the first contact, the challenge and then Shanks is instinctively in the right place. For the second one, that’s just instinct. He is a goal scorer first and foremost. As soon as he takes his first touch he knows what he is doing. There’s no panic, there’s no rushed feeling. As soon as it leaves his boot he knows it’s a goal, 100 per cent. I’ve been there myself. It’s top, top quality but that’s Shanks. That shows you his value to us.”

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson, whose side slipped down to fifth, acknowledged the Scotland striker’s quality and said that proved the difference on the day.

“We lacked quality and then lost a goal from a set-play, which has been our Achilles heel. When you look at the organisation and detail we go into, there is a frustration. Lawrence has scored a lot of goals at the back post and we pointed that out - but we go in [halftime] 1-0 down. That’s not because they’ve opened us up, it’s because of our lack of quality in the final third and our decision making.

“Lawrence’s second goal is exceptional and it changes any momentum that we had. That is the difference between the levels. We are trying to bridge a gap where there is a huge financial disparity, which is why you get players like Lawrence Shankland. His forward play was the difference.”