Defender agrees a two-year contract to move to Edinburgh

Stuart Findlay has agreed a two-year contract to join Hearts this summer from Oxford United. He is currently on a season-long loan at Tynecastle Park and that deal will convert into a permanent agreement when his Oxford contract expires at the end of the campaign.

Talks between Hearts officials and the 30-year-old defender progressed positively in recent weeks and he has now committed his future to the club. Head coach Derek McInnes brought him to Gorgie on loan after the pair worked together at Kilmarnock. They will now continue their relationship into the 2026/27 campaign.

Findlay has started every one of Hearts’ 20 league matches this season and is a key component in a team sitting three points clear at the top of the William Hill Premiership. He has also scored five goals in 24 games across all competitions. After reaching an agreement to stay in Edinburgh until 2028, he can now look ahead with his future secured.

“Stuart has been every inch the Hearts player I expected him to be when he came in during the summer,” McInnes told the club’s official website. “He’s been part of a successful defence and he’s a danger in opposition boxes, and he is the type of character you want around the dressing room. He loves it here and wants to be part of something special, so it made perfect sense to take advantage of his contract expiring down south and get his future sorted with Hearts.”

Findlay’s agreement follows the arrivals of Dutch right-back Jordi Altena and Kazakhstani winger Islam Chesnokov as Hearts began January transfer business early. Altena arrived from RKC Waalwijk, while Chesnokov completed his move to Tynecastle on Tuesday having agreed a pre-contract last year.

The 26-year-old is a creative right winger who likes to drift inside on to his favoured left foot. He holds 22 international caps for Kazakhstan, scoring three goals, and is also a regular goalscorer at club level. In 68 games in his country’s Premier League, he managed 24 goals and claimed 11 assists. That form captured the attention of clubs in several European countries and Hearts are delighted to finally secure his signature.

“I’m really pleased that Islam is here, he’s a Hearts player and he’s raring to get started,” commented McInnes after Hearts announced Chesnokov’s signing. “Our desire to bring Islam in has been well-documented and sometimes these things take a bit of time, but the dialogue between myself, the club and Islam has always been there.

“There was never any panic and everyone involved deserves a lot of credit for making it happen. He’s a very talented player and a good boy, and we think he can come in and help the team. We’re in a good place and we’ll do everything we can to enable Islam to be a success at Hearts.”