Key Hearts centre-backs near a return date but broken foot sidelines another forward

Hearts will be without forward Gary Mackay-Steven until after the winter World Cup break due to a broken foot, the Evening News can reveal.

Injury problems at Riccarton are starting to ease overall with centre-backs Craig Halkett and Kye Rowles approaching a return to action. However, Mackay-Steven won’t play again until late December due to an untimely fracture.

The winger is on crutches at the moment as he waits for the bone to heal and is hopeful of resuming training during the cinch Premiership’s mid-season hiatus. The league pauses on the weekend of November 12/13 whilst World Cup 2022 takes place in Qatar, and restarts on December 17/18.

Mackay-Steven last featured for Hearts as a substitute in the 3-0 home defeat by Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League earlier this month. His absence compounds a relentless run of injuries to key players including Liam Boyce, Beni Baningime, Peter Haring, Michael Smith, plus Halkett and Rowles.

The latter two are now back running and hope to be fit to resume competitive matches in the next couple of weeks. Thursday’s Conference League tie against Latvian champions RFS at Tynecastle will come too soon, although Haring should return after concussion.

“No centre-backs yet. Both of them are running now but they have just started so we are building them up,” confirmed Robbie Neilson, the Hearts manager. “They will probably be another couple of weeks. Peter Haring will be back. Gary Mackay-Steven is out until after the World Cup break with a broken foot.”