Clevid Dikamona: I want to be at Hearts for rest of my life

Clevid Dikamona's deal with Hearts ends in May

His current deal expires in May but Hearts have an option to extend it and Dikamona is desperate for them to do so.

The Congolese internationalist, 28, arrived in Edinburgh in September and signed until the end of the season. The extension clause is at Hearts’ discretion, with manager Craig Levein yet to decide whether he wants Dikamona beyond the summer.

So far, the defender has performed courageously during 16 appearances in maroon and become a popular figure with supporters. As part of an exclusive Evening News interview, he outlined why he wants to remain in the Capital for possibly the rest of his career.

“I want to stay here and extend my contract,” he said. “When I started my career, I knew that if you work hard then you get what you deserve. If I work hard and give everything for this club, why not? It will depend what the manager decides.

“It’s true I want to stay here as long as possible. I have a wife and two beautiful girls, who are three and six years old, and they enjoy this city. Edinburgh is a very nice town and Hearts is a big club. They gave me an opportunity to play a lot of big games against Hibs, against Celtic, against Rangers. Throughout my career, I have travelled every year to try to play at a high level. I played in France, England, Greece and Israel. Today I am here in the top league in Scotland, playing for Hearts, a club who can reach the European competitions. I want to be here, maybe for the rest of my life. Maybe everything I gave before was to bring me here now.

“If the manager told me, ‘we want to give you a five-year contract’, I would sign right now. I can’t say to my wife that we have to move for another year. I will do everything to stay here.”