The 25 year plus John Robertson record that Lawrence Shankland can break against Dinamo Minsk
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Lawrence Shankland has the opportunity to write his name into Hearts folklore when his side take on Dinamo Minsk in tonight’s crucial Europa Conference League opener.
Shankland has been the team’s star performer with 60 goals in 103 matches across all competitions since arriving at Tynecastle from Belgian side Beerschot VA in 2022.
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Hide AdIn many people’s eyes he is one of the Edinburgh side’s best finishers since club legend John Robertson, who netted a combined 214 goals for the Jambos in two incredible stints between 1981 and 1998.
However, Shankland has struggled for form and confidence in his third term and currently has a return of just one goal in his opening nine appearances, in a run on the pitch which has also coincided with his team losing eight matches in a row across all competitions.
Shankland finally ended that barren run last weekend by getting on the scoresheet in the 96th minute in a 1-1 draw with Ross County.
The 29-year-old, who has been selected for Scotland’s upcoming Nations League tests against Croatia and Portugal, will have high hopes that that goal can kickstart his season as he hopes to score again in his side’s upcoming game against Minsk.
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Hide AdThe match will be played behind closed doors on neutral territory due to Belarus’ role in the war between Russia and Ukraine.
While Shankland may not have the backing of the vocal Hearts fans out on the pitch, he will have plenty of incentive to score in Azerbaijan as he aims to become the Edinburgh side’s all-time leading goalscorer in Europe.
That record is currently held by Robertson, who scored seven times in 15 European appearances, with his most notable goals coming against Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid.
As it stands, Shankland has six strikes in 13 European appearances for Hearts. His first came in a Europa League qualifying defeat to FC Zurich in August 2022. That same campaign he netted two goals in six Conference League games, with both coming against Latvian side Rigas.
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Hide AdShankland added a further two goals last summer in a third round Conference League play-off win against Danish side Rosenborg while his most recent strike came during a 2-1 home defeat to Greek side PAOK.
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