Hearts search for a partner for Lawrence Shankland and look to finish on a high

Costa Rican forward Kenneth Vargas is in contention to start against Livingston

Lawrence Shankland remains Hearts' talisman with 17 goals in 27 appearances for the club this season, but the search for a suitable striking partner is ongoing. Costa Rican substitute Kenneth Vargas scored before Shankland to ignite Saturday's comeback from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Ross County, however other goalscorers are short in supply at Tynecastle Park.

Alan Forrest and Yutaro Oda have both played up front alongside Shankland in recent weeks with Liam Boyce currently injured. Forrest, Oda and Vargas are all jointly below the captain on Hearts' goalscorers list but lagging way behind with only two goals each this term. Boyce is on one, his appearances restricted by injuries. Kyosuke Tagawa also has one strike to his name. He started against County but was substituted at the interval after an ineffective first half.

Head coach Steven Naismith admits he is still striving to find an effective combination in attack. The 3-5-2 formation used during November and December allows two forwards but limits the number of attack-minded players selected in comparison to the 4-2-3-1 system used previously. Naismith acknowledged that Shankland needs help with goalscoring responsibilities.

"It's been fits and starts for most of the boys up there," he told the Edinburgh News. "The change of shape hasn't helped our forward players with there being less players to occupy that area. A lot of the players in those positions are young. They have had moments. Kenneth came in on Saturday, did well and got us a goal to get us back in the game. All the guys need to grasp it and play well enough that they are undroppable. That's the case for most players in the squad."

Vargas is a strong contender to partner Shankland for Hearts' first game of 2024, which comes on Tuesday away to Livingston. "Yes, I think he is. We forget how young he is," explained Naismith. "His ability is good but it's his style of game I like best. He is more mature than you think with the way he uses his body and where he takes his touch. His movement is good. These are all things that are hard to teach and he's got them.

"He just needs time to develop but, at a club like Hearts, you are judged every time you play. If you don't produce something, it's: 'We need to get somebody better.' We need to let players settle, although obviously they do need to contribute. Kenneth is a comfortable finisher, not erratic, but in games you see his link-up play. Those small details are the sign of a good player. Alan Forrest has played up front for us and done well. He contributed on Saturday and gave us something different."

Hearts head to West Lothian boasting seven wins and a draw from their last 11 matches since beating Livingston 1-0 in Gorgie on 1 November. December has been particularly demanding, with seven games crammed into the month. Tuesday's game is the last before a winter break lasting two and a half weeks.

"If we can come through this and manage one more win, it will have been a brilliant block of fixtures for us," said Naismith. "I knew it was going to be a tough schedule. We weren't at our best on Saturday but we got into good positions in the first half. That fatigue makes you overhit or underhit the pass or lose concentration.

"We made a few changes but never really got the bounce we needed. The boys dug deep. We got to 2-2 and gave ourselves 15 minutes to go and try to win the game. We gave too many cheap fouls away, forced passes while we were fatigued and Ross County got the touch, so the momentum drains. We needed to keep building momentum.

"It has been gruelling for the boys. We just need one more big performance to finish off what will have been a successful first half of the season. Livi will be tough. I will consistently say that the astro pitches make it more difficult because they even the game out a bit. The ball moves slower and the bounce is different, but we need to be aggressive.

"There are no real excuses. On Saturday, we could say we were fatigued and Ross County looked fresh. That's a fair thing to say [after County had their previous two games postponed]. Livingston played on Saturday, so did we. Now we need to go and put on a performance to get the win we need."