Hearts transfer latest: Enquiries and talks ahead of the January deadline day
Movement is still possible at Tynecastle
Four new Hearts signings are already in place with four full days remaining of the January transfer window. The prospect of more arrivals is realistic but no-one at Riccarton is rushing to sign for the sake of it. Outgoings are also possible with enquiries made for several players.
Striker Elton Kabangu, defenders Jamie McCart and Michael Steinwender, plus midfielder Sander Kartum, are the additions to what was a substantial senior Hearts squad before the window opened. Forward Liam Boyce is gone along with defenders Kye Rowles and Daniel Oyegoke, plus teenager Macaulay Tait’s loan move to Livingston. There is room for more business, both incoming and outgoing, before 11pm on Monday.
Tynecastle officials will only do deals they feel are right for the club - and for players which meet the approval of Jamestown Analytics. The football data firm developed bespoke algorithms for Hearts as part of their partnership and, on the early evidence of Kabangu and McCart, the technology seems to be working. Steinwender and Kartum are still awaiting debuts.
Hearts would still like to add a creative, goalscoring forward to their ranks. They held talks aimed at signing Danny Armstrong from Kilmarnock and the Kazakhstani international winger Islam Chesnokov earlier in the window. Neither of those moves have progressed in the last week and it remains to be seen if talks can advance. Several other targets are also being monitored by the Hearts scouting network, with left-sided defensive cover also required.
Further outgoings to both reduce squad size and free up wages would help numbers both on the training pitch and on the club’s balance sheet. There have been enquiries for Japanese winger Yutaro Oda and Scottish forward Barrie McKay, both of whom are out of favour under head coach Neil Critchley. As of Wednesday, no concrete offers had arrived for either player.
Critchley is aware that the situation can change quickly and is realistic about chances of more players leaving Hearts. “I could say 'no', but after experiencing what's just happened with Daniel [joining Hellas Verona], I'd have looked rather stupid,” he told the Edinburgh News. “That was unexpected so I would be foolish to say 'no'. One or two players have played less and haven't been around the squad so I'm sure they will be looking at options themselves. We have got until Monday evening so I wouldn't rule it out. Something could happen.”
Critchley’s immediate focus is Saturday’s Premiership match against Dundee as Hearts strive to extend an unbeaten run comprising four wins and two draws in their last six games. Dundee suffered only one defeat in their last six and sit level on points with Hearts entering the fixture at Dens Park.
“Dundee are in good form themselves after a derby win in the [Scottish] Cup,” acknowledged Critchley. “Then they had a free weekend. I'm sure they will be refreshed and ready to go, so we know we are in for a difficult task. They have had some good results at home recently against the top two. It's a tough game against them and we are looking to improve on our performance from Saturday, even though we picked up three points against Kilmarnock.
“In my experience, if you perform well over a period of time, then that will lead to results. The players are not daft. They know when they've played well and they know when they haven't reached the standards we expect. I think we deserved to win last week and created the best chances. Six weeks ago, we might have lost that game and we didn't, so that's a definite positive. The group is moving forward in the right direction but I still feel we can perform better. I think the players felt that themselves after the game.”