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Club chief hands Rangers a golden chance to do £3m bargain deal, new deal
Lawrence Shankland is ‘not close’ to signing a new contract at Hearts in what could be a boost in Rangers’ potential pursuit of the £3 million Scotland international.
With his contract expiring during the summer of 2025, any further discussions that will take place between Heart of Midlothian and their free-scoring centre-forward between now and the end of the season are likely to dictate whether or not this is Lawrence Shankland’s final season at Tynecastle.
He certainly won’t be short of admirers, should Hearts opt to cash in this summer rather than risk losing him for free 12 months later down the line.
Shankland, who was on Rangers’ radar during the January transfer window per reporter Peter O’Rourke, has 27 goals in all competitions this season after all. Centre-forwards of this ilk do not come around too often.
And certainly not for a fee in the region of just £3 million.
Rangers gifted Lawrence Shankland chance
According to Hearts chairwoman Ann Budge, not only has Shankland not signed a new deal, he is not even ‘close’ to doing so.
“It’s not definitely close. Not at all,” Budge tells PLZ Soccer. “He’s still got 18 months left on his contract, there or thereabouts, so a large part of it is up to Lawrence. He’s a young man and is looking at what’s right for his career.
“(Shankland) has been fantastic for us. And I’d like to think we’ve been pretty good for him as well. So we’re still talking and we’d love him to stay.
“But he’s a man in demand, as we know. And I think that’s only going to increase. It will be his decision, at the end of the day.”
With his 29th birthday approaching, Shankland is unlikely to get a better chance to represent one of the Old Firm giants or, if he prefers, a club south of the border. With a staggering 55 goals in just 84 Hearts appearances, one can only imagine the numbers he could post if surrounded by the creativity of James Tavernier, Ross McCausland, Tom Lawrence, Todd Cantwell and co at Ibrox.
Hearts could lose 27-goal striker
“If Lawrence Shankland at this stage of his career saw either of the Old Firm come calling, he would want to make it happen,” Kenny Miller, who represented both Celtic and Rangers, tells Clyde Super Scoreboard.
“He would want to work for a manager like Brendan Rodgers. That would be a massive plus for him. (Rodgers) has got a brilliant track record of taking players up a few levels. I don’t think he would take any convincing.
“(But) I just think there is more of an opportunity for him at Rangers,” Miller adds. “Because they don’t have a Kyogo.”
