Hibs owner Ron Gordon 'hopeful' as he offers Ryan Porteous contract update

Hibs owner Ron Gordon is “hopeful” that Scotland defender Ryan Porteous will sign a contract extension after putting forward a “very good proposal”.

The 23-year-old centre-half is out of contract at the end of the season and his stock is high after an impressive Scotland debut last month against Ukraine. The club have made several offers to Porteous’ representatives, but an agreement has yet to reached on a new contract. The player would be free to talk to other club and sig a pre-contract elsewhere from January 1, but but Gordon believes Hibs can tie down their prized asset before then.

“Ryan is terrific,” said Gordon. “He’s a great ambassador for the club in terms of his commitment and his style of play. I absolutely love Ryan. I’m hopeful that he will extend with us. I don’t know that we can keep him forever, but I’m hopeful that we will extend with us. We’ve had conversations and I think we’ve put a very good proposal for him to consider.”

Speaking on the Press Box podact, the US-based businessman continued: “Ultimately it’s going to be his call and we’ll support him no matter what he decides. We want to support all our players and certainly want to support Ryan, but I’m very hopeful we can reach an agreement that means he can stay at the club a little bit longer and we can position it more effectively so he can help us reach our goals. A lot will depend on Ryan and what he wants to do. Hopefully we can accommodate his wishes and find a place where we’re both happy.”