Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland signs new deal to remain at Tynecastle

Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland has signed a new deal to remain at Tynecastle.

The 29-year-old forward has been the subject of speculation regarding his future since his contract recently expired.

But he has now decided to remain at the Gorgie side by putting pen to paper on a three-year deal that will keep him at the club until 2028.

New head coach Derek McInnes revealed he was keen to keep Shankland, and he has now got his wish with the news that the Scotland international is staying at Tynecastle.

He jetted out to join his team mates at the pre-season training camp in Spain on Wednesday.

And the club confirmed he had signed a new contract on Thursday.

McInnes said: “Lawrence’s not only been ingrained in the club the last few years, he’s been a big player for the club, knows his way about the Premiership, knows his way to goal.

“It just made so much sense on so many levels for me. I’ve known Lawrence since he was a young boy and I know how important family is to him and how important being happy is.

“I always felt that that was a huge advantage for us. Not only does he enjoy his time at Hearts, those family connections are always very strong.

“I do feel that having that recognised number no.9 , a goal scorer with a real pedigree, Scotland internationalist, the motivation for Lawerence to do well here at not only a club that he loves, a club that he’s happy with.

“You see the way he’s embraced his teammates this morning. He’s a really popular boy, but he’s got so much to do here. In my time at Hearts, I want to make sure it’s successful and I want Lawrence to feel exactly the same and he does.

“We want to be lifting silverware. We want to be going into group stages in Europe and we want to have a consistent thing going here and that is the driver for all of us. I do feel that having Lawrence in the building gives us a better chance of achieving all that.”