Last night, in the immediate aftermath of their win over Hibs, where Lawrence Shankland scored the winner, and kept up a decent record of getting big goals in big games, the Hearts manager Steven Naismith was not in the mood to give the fans much to cheer about.
In fact, Naismith’s intention was to prepare them for Hard Times, the very hardest. Because he started to pave the way for Hearts selling the player in the next four weeks, and he even threw in the story of The Village Idiot and how he moved from Kilmarnock to Ibrox and how it was Naismith himself stepped up to fill the hole, as if the inference wasn’t already obvious.
They are preparing to sell Lawrence Shankland if the club across the city from us comes calling. The Hearts manager cares more about slashing our tyres than he does about the wellbeing of his own club. Shankland is not only their top scorer, he’s virtually their only scorer.
The stat the commentary team laid on Hearts fans last night is terrifying; after Shankland, their top scorer this season is Own Goals; that’s no joke. Shankland has 16. Their next highest scorer has 2.
How often must we warn Hearts fans that this guy does not have their best interests foremost in his mind? How often must we tell that club that it has dreadful leadership which doesn’t give a fig for it?
When will it be clear? When Shankland is at Ibrox in a cut price deal that leaves them scrambling for some cheap replacement? Will that settle the issue?
There’s talk of them going for Van Der Veen; Ibrox has also been linked with him.
But Shankland is younger, and has done it consistently. And yes, we all know the pressure, the intense pressure, the West of Scotland media will bring to bear on that club and the player to force Hearts to complete the deal, but let’s be honest they hold all the cards.
Except the one that matters, which is Naismith being willing to make the sale so that he can stay in good with the club he really cares about.
There’s no point in pretending otherwise, his comments are about as clear as they can be. Hearts should “enjoy him while he’s here” and if he goes don’t worry because there are players who can take his place already at the club … except there aren’t and Hearts fans aren’t stupid and they know there aren’t.
The talk on their forums is that they want the club to hold out for millions, many millions, more than the Ibrox club will be willing to pay. But the way Naismith was talking, he’d be prepared to accept much, much less and is already gearing up to trot out the “no-one wants an unhappy player at their club” rationale … it’s guff. He can’t wait to see him in blue.
And before I get an inbox full of bile from Ibrox fans about Miovski, I said in a previous blog that Aberdeen is fully entitled to ask for decent money for the guy; I wasn’t advocating that we low-ball them and grab the guy on the cheap or that we unsettle them to do it.
Ibrox is not beneath trying every stratagem in the dark arts.
And with the player’s own manager willing to send his entire season down the tubes they might not even need to delve that deeply into them.
Hopefully an English championship team come in for him. Blow sevco out of the water.
Hopefully a Scottish Premier League team comes in for him – And blows Sevco out of the water…
And that team is – C.E.L.T.I.C – CELTIC !!!
Typical of that twisted bigoted dwarf,it is really wonderful to feel his pain.Lets hope the decent hearts supporters see through him,and chase as all he wants is a job at castlegrey skulls along with all the other festering clowns
Are you actually suggesting that Hearts would deliberately sell their only prize asset to the huns for a cut price just so as to further their cause and hurt Celtic? That just doesn’t make business sense. Shankland is contracted to Hearts until the end of the 24/25 season. He is 28 years old. Miovski is 24 and is contracted to Aberdeen till the end of the 25/26 season. I know who I would rather have in the Celtic team. As such I think he is worth more but the calculations involvfdare more nuanced than that. If Shankland does bag enough goals to topple Celtic then immediately he has repaid his value 10 tenfold. As such, if Hearts take anything less than £5million then the fans should be livid.
Did you hear Naismith last night? That’s exactly what they are considering doing.
No that’s what Naismith’s wants them to do but it’s the Hearts board who will decide whether a bid is acceptable or not. The only power Naismith has is to say “I don’t want to sell him in this window” or “I’m happy to let him go provided you get me x, y, z player as replacement(s)”. Personally I doubt they’ll sell him in January for the very issue you’ve alluded to – they are literally goalless without him. They will plan to lose him in the summer unless someone offers them a fee in January that they literally cannot turn down and bear in mind that someone could be us !!!
I didn’t hear what he said but I beleive you when you say he was saying Shankland is off in a roundabout way.
I can see the point in Heaets selling him as he is 28 and has 18 months left on his contract. He is also in a good run of form so it should maximise the money Hearts will make on him. Hearts won’t accept a lowball offer from the huns because they want to help them out. They will accept the highest offer they receive. And if he was really that good then an English Championship club would easily outbid the huns.
Naismith doesn’t like Celtic. Of course he doesn’t. But he is not so stupid as to be seen to be helping out the huns whilst manager of a major competitor. Nor does he carry that sort of sway with the Hearts decision makers.
I am surprised you are suggesting as much.
It wont be up to naismith If Shankland decides to leave it will be The Hearts board of directors who will decide and lets face it money talks and Celtic can outspend Sevco any day of the week.
That’s the point I was making Tezza. I mean it not being up to Naismith. In terms of price only. It does seem to be the case that Shankland will go to the huns but the Hearts board must stick to their guns amd not pay any heed to the pish in the press about him being valued at £1.8M.
Of course Celtic can outspend sevco, with their biscuit tin mentality I’d be very surprised if they do!
Have you watched Shankland at play ! First of all he’s about a stone overweight for a pro striker . Secondly and most importantly ,he’s slower than arthritis . Any half decent central defender will be smoking the old Panatella ceegar against his major deficiencies .What is it with the amount of chunky strikers in Scottish football now, or in the past ?
It’s to do with the pies in the diet. You could be critical of their fitness levels, waistlines and their speed out the traps but they’re fitba’ players not male models or 100m sprinters. Tyson Fury made the point that Wladimir Klitschko and Anthony Joshua both had the physique of Marvel superheroes, yet they each lost their World Titles to a couple of fat blokes – Klitschko to Fury himself and AJ to Andy Ruiz.
Bottom line is they can look like Sir Les Patterson as far as I’m concerned so long as they are scoring goals (for us) – Dixie Deans and Leigh Griffiths were both a bit on the portly side (as was Kenny Dalglish), but it never held either of them back.
Frankly I’d sign both him and Miovski to ensure we take the title no matter what. Our board will no doubt instead bring in on loan that guy from Wolves who couldn’t score in Amsterdam with his pockets stuffed with €100 notes…..
Rodger’s signings are pathetic. 3 from almost 40 actually made the first team. This guy from Hearts would probably score goals for us.
He signed Oily Burke. One January I couldn’t believe this alleged footballer played with the Hoop’s he’s the “ worst player I’ve ever seen.
I’m surprised Rodger’s still about, I tipped him off before Christmas.
If Oli Burke was the worst player you’ve ever seen, thank your lucky stars you weren’t around in the early 90s when the sight of John Hewitt, Wayne Biggins and Carl Muggleton – respectively a winger who couldn’t run or cross the ball, a striker who couldn’t score and had all the mobility of a paraplegic and a goalkeeper completely devoid of positional sense, reflexes or handling skills – would have had you tearing your own eyes out.
They (and others) were greatly admired for their performances with Celtic – but only by sniggering huns. In comparison to them, Burke was practically a success.
Who makes up this crap , Hearts do not need to sell him we are a well run club who don’t have to cow tow to the weegie mafia those days are gone . Making up shit cos you are frightened that Sevco will steal your thunder is childish as it makes you look silly ,Even if Hearts do sell him it will take more money than Sevco can afford and more than you’d be willing to spend, there are English Championship sides with money to burn and would not vault at a 8 or 9 million price tag
Calm down to a frenzy. Naismith is not on the board. His views may include this option but he’s not the decision maker and another of his well published views is that Rangers no longer exist, something not forgotten at newco.
The details will be ironed out down the “Ludge”
Celtic could and should speak to the hearts board with the offer of £500,000 more than any thing they would bid. This would force them to up their bid and eventually have to pay the going rate. Surely the Hearts board would bite! He would also do us a turn in our 20 corners a game. We must be coming close to 200 corners this season alone and what have we got to show for them?
We should take a cold, calculated position, and intimate to both
Hearts & Aberdeen, that if sevco were to come in for either
Shankland or Miovski, we would top their best offer, e.g. by £1M.
Then, accidently on purpose, make sure the ibrox lot are fully aware.
We have not been the best on the park: keeping these players away
from ibrox would be an additional insurance policy to win the league.
And signing either player would certainly strengthen our squad,
and either should reliably hit the ground running?
Celtic should do a Scott Allen on Sevco, outbid them for Shankland and offer the player terms Sevco wouldn’t be able to match never MIND better. Shouldn’t stop us going for Miovski as well as BOTH players would do a turn for us and bang in the goals and for fun. Seeing as Kyogo seems to be doing an Edouard on us if that disgraceful missed sitter against Dundee is anything to go on, I would have BOTH of them starting ahead of a player whose head appears to have been turned and would rather be with his former manager at Spurs?
Doesn’t matter WHAT Naismith does James to try and ingratiate himself to the Orcs by selling his best player to them, they’ll NEVER forgive him for that LEGNADERY Daily Record banner headline: “I haven’t quit RANGERS, I’ve quit SEVCO” Newco isn’t GERS to gutted Steven.
Shankland himself seems a clever enough and intelligent guy…
Pressed by The Pro Sevco BBC Scotland he doesn’t give anything at all away just saying that he wants to concentrate on his football which is what a consummate professional like him should do –
I really think that Celtic should blow Sevco outta the water with Shankland and we can bloody well certainly afford to on a financial basis anyway…
He doesn’t need time to ‘settle in’ like these snowflake lightweights from far away lands that ‘sonny’ Lawwell seems to favour – Shankland is very settled here in Not so Bonnie Scotland –
And he won’t be away at any far flung Asian or whatever tournament either…
He is also a crack shot from the penalty spot with 15 outta 15 for Hearts until last night’s miss which was actually a decent penalty that cracked the base of the post and his penalty percentage rate is even far superior to Penalty Tav which is pretty impressive indeed…
If Celtic don’t want him then I truly hope that a Championship club in England come in for him (ideally the unfashionable one that’s ma favourite English team) as if Sevco do get him then trust me they will win this most critical of League Titles –
But anyway they’ll be a bonus for Daddy Lawwell as his much loved O*d Fi*m model will be truly flourishing and well alive and Sonny Lawwell will get a nice wee bonus for pleasing Daddy of course !
Get Shankland now Brendan – You can well afford him and Sevco can’t – but if they do get him then next season they will be able to afford FIFTEEN Shankland’s
And rest assured they won’t hoard their windfall in The Banks !
Our fans should be looking inwards at our decision makers and ourselves. We will win or lose this title based on what the board, manager and fans didn’t do, not what the rankers, Naismith and others do. We fans pretty much knew what we needed in the summer, with only a few minor disagreements regarding positions.
Ange’s team were on the downward slope from January to the end of last season so what did we do, we got rid of GG rather than have a more flexible inclusive structure. Greed, rigidity and dogged persistence may be what has led us to where we are now.
Where is the replacement striker we needed. Over reliance on Kyogo along with the one striker only policy was continued. Ange buggers off leaving no flexibility to structure and over reliance on Kyogo. Apparently we didn’t need a GG just a young donkey. That’s harsh on Oh I know but the development boy simply wasn’t ready and we knew it and they allowed it.
The board didn’t enable the freshening up with first team ready players, Brendan didn’t kick up a big enough fuss, season tickets were bought up and so their view was accepted. Again. Unprepared for CL and even the domestic challenges it appears. They didn’t go out and get the 1st team ready players we needed. That we knew we needed. Cheaper version development wingers, midfielders and CBs alongside a Liverpool reserve were brought in.
Not enough football minded fans kicked off and the acceptors accepted. Letting them off and allowing them potentially enough rope to hang us from. Again. Cuddling up with money grabbing board isn’t 1st team football progression and isn’t working.
Instead they were allowed to pursue with the ‘good enough for now’ fantasy football and development strategy in their pursuit of turning £2/3m players into £15/20m players down the line somewhere off in the future.
If there is blame to apply at this season’s end it lies much nearer home. I hope Brendan and the recruitment team are looking hard around the European January transfer market with considerably more quality and enticement wages in mind. Bringing in loan players of class may be necessary as I can’t see this lot of charlatans forking out money. Naismith’s words won’t be what determines our season. HH
Yeah we can outspend Sevco but our Board won’t spend the money required.
They will not spend millions on a 28 year old player with little no resale value at the end of a 3 or 4 year contract. Especially for a Scottish player.
Besides if Celtic were to pursue Shankland the Hearts Board, with known form, would ratchet up the price.
No Naismith will get his way, whispering dreams of glory in Shankland’s lughole.
His best bet would be if an English Club comes in for him.
Shankland is a fine player overall and can score goals and hit a good pen. More of a number 10 for me.
He would be great for Celtic. Naismith will not be pushing him Rangers way, he will go to the highest bidder. It will be a board/club decision and cash is king.
We should ask the question. Miovski I think suits our “model” better, so hopefully an EFL team bag Shankland if he does leave. But there’s no harm in us bidding to, ahem, set the minimum acceptable offer. I also think he would surprise even himself with how many goals he would get for us.
So what? Big deal! If we’re not good enough to win the title against a side from Ibrox with Shankland included, then we don’t deserve to be champions. Period.
On current form, shanklands the best player in the league, if he went to Celtic I think it would be a great signing. Naismith is only the manager of the club, it’s up to the guys in suits what happens with players coming in or out. If Celtic make an acceptable offer, he will go it’s that simple. I think an English club will sign him though, it was a terrific goal he scored last night. Kyogo is went right off the boil, Shankland at this moment in time is the more clinical .