Kyle expresses fears over career

Kevin Kyle has expressed fears that his football career may be over – news that will only add to the uncertainty surrounding Hearts after events of the weekend.

Striker Kyle, who has not played for the Tynecastle club since January due to a recurring hip problem, voiced his concerns to BBC Radio Scotland this morning.

Kyle admitted when asked about fears over his career: "Those thoughts are still in my head just now.

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"For some unknown reason, since 2005, I seem to get paranoid about these things (injuries]"

The Jambos' second-top scorer, with ten goals this term, admitted concerns for his long-term future surfaced after he learned the extent of his injury.

That revelation will do little to settle the nerves of Hearts fans, who were left confused by the omission of Marius Zaliukas from their team's starting line-up for a 4-0 defeat to Rangers on Saturday.

When asked about Zaliukas, manager Jim Jefferies said: "He wasn't available for selection – that's as much as I'm going to say on it." When prompted to expand further, Jefferies offered only: "He wasn't available for selection."

The Rangers onslaught Jefferies had predicted in the days before making the trip to Ibrox materialised much to the horror of Hearts fans, a shaky defence contributing largely to the Jambos' travails in Govan. That makeshift backline, with Eggert Jonsson and Adrian Mrowiec at centre back, would naturally have included Andy Webster and Lee Wallace, who are understood to have failed a late fitness test, and captain Zaliukas, who was reportedly ordered not to travel on the team bus on Saturday morning upon instruction from club owner Vladimir Romanov.

"I think the (second and third] goals were a result of two players playing out of position at centre half. I had been working with Webster, Zaliukas and Wallace, but they weren't available today for various reasons. That shows you how much it can change in 24 hours," added Jefferies who will hope to have his skipper available for Wednesday's visit of Celtic, and is likely to have clear-the-air talks with Romanov, as the Lithuanian businessman flies into Edinburgh this week.

Zaliukas finds himself outwith the first team reckoning for the second time this campaign having been dropped at the behest of Romanov earlier in the season after delaying on agreement of a new contract.

David Templeton was withdrawn from Saturday's defeat to Rangers with a strain to his hamstring tendon but hopes to be fit for Wednesday's Tynecastle showdown.