Rangers starlet given transfer advice, Aberdeen player eyed and Dundee set sights on EFL talent

Latest news from Hibs and Hearts' domestic rivals as Serie A ramp up interest in Scotland star

It's now only a few hours to go until the Scottish Premiership is back in action with Hearts preparing to welcome St Johstone at Tynecastle and Hibs travelling across the bridge to take on Dundee FC at Dens Park.

The international break saw Scotland finish off their Euros qualifying campaign with two draws but their previous results saw the Tartan Army already book their places in next year's tournament in Germany. Hearts' Lawrence Shankland will return from international duty a hero following his last minute equaliser in Tblisi and both the captain and his boss will be hopeful the goalscoring form continues as the Jambos head into the next quarter of fixtures.

Hibs, on the other hand, welcome back the Australian duo of Lewis Miller and Martin Boyle following the Socceroos wins over Bangladesh and Palestine.

Here is all the latest from Hibs and Hearts' Premiership rivals...

Serie A 'step up' interest in ex-Dons star

Juventus have "stepped up their interest" in Bologna's Lewis Ferguson and are willing to table a £17.5m offer to sign the Scotland midfielder in January (Daily Mail).

It was revealed yesterday (23 November) that the Scottish international could be gifting Aberdeen a huge Christmas present but it remained unclear whether the Serie A side Juventus would be willing to spend the €20 million Bologna have valued their player.

As reported by the Daily Mail, it now appears Juventus have upped their interest in the attacking midfielder and the Pittodrie side, who have a 15 per cent sell-on Ferguson's sale, could be in line for a multi-million pound cash fall.

Rising Ibrox talent urged to stay

Ross McCausland "shouldn't be in any rush to move on" from Rangers, says former Ibrox skipper Barry Ferguson, who reckons the 20-year-old has the potential to be as good as his old team-mate Neil McCann (Daily Record).

McCausland has another six months left on his Gers contract and already the rumour mill has revealed Brentford and other Serie A sides are soon to be showing interest.

The Daily Record columnist Ferguson details that while he happily believes the youngster will go on to greater things, given he only has one first team start under his belt, he would be "better off staying where is for the time being and locking up over 100 appearances in a Rangers shirt before he even thinks about taking the next step."

Dundee hope to secure EFL star

Manager Tony Docherty has confirmed Dundee will try to sign loan striker Amadou Bakayoko on a permanent basis from Forest Green (Courier).

The Sierra Leon international picked up a brace for the Dark Blues before the international break as they thrashed St Mirren 4-0. This has taken his season tally to four after he joined the club on the back of a disappointing year down south.

A January move to Forest Green from Bolton Wanderers ended in relegation and no goals for the striker, off the back of just one league goal for Bolton.

However, his recent form has prompted his new boss to say that all he needed was the right platform: "Baka has got every attribute. Technically he's a very gifted player and he's a good, good finisher. He just needed the platform, I think. And he needed the right people around him."

St Mirren risk double departure

Stephen Robinson is still hopeful of persuading St Mirren duo Keanu Baccus and Ryan Strain to extend their stays in Paisley, with the manager saying "there's been no interest and no offers" for the Australian internationals (St Mirren).

With their initial two-year deals set to expire at the end of the season, Robinson's squad is now in an exceptionally precarious situation as they could lose both their key assets for free in the summer if they decide against extending their contracts.

Selling them in the upcoming transfer season could also risk the club's chances of repeating their top six success from last season.

Speaking to the Paisley Daily Express, Robinson said: "We spoke to Ryan and Keanu’s representatives about negotiating a new deal but it wasn’t something they were wanting to sit down and do at that stage. But we haven’t given up hope. We’re realistic to know we might not be able to meet wage demands that other clubs can, but what I know is they’ll continue to give 100 percent to us."