The club will be losing a number of forwards at the end of the season, with contracts and loan deals expiring.
Strikers Aaron Connolly and Billy Sharp have their deals running out at the end of June, with no reports of them signing an extension at the MKM Stadium.
This is in addition to the loans of attacking players like Liam Delap and Fabio Carvalho running out in the summer, with the latter’s future surely lying in the top-flight.
Their impressive performances will have given their parent clubs food for thought, and they could be either given chances in the first team at Manchester City or Liverpool, respectively, or sold for a hefty fee.
With the club desperate for firepower after an impressive seventh place finish in the Championship, they should look towards one Scottish Premier League star as a transfer target in the summer.
Shankland has been linked with a Championship summer move
Hearts’ striker Shankland has been linked with a move to the Championship in the summer, with a number of clubs interested in his services.
Rangers were reportedly quoted a fee in excess of £4.5 million in January for the forward, which could now be even higher given his performances in the second half of the season.
HITC also reported that EFL clubs like Southampton, Hull City and Middlesbrough were also interested in signing the Hearts captain.
Hearts boss Steven Naismith noted that the club could be open to selling the PFA Scotland Player of the Year, given that he is on the final year of his contract with the Edinburgh club.
They will need to sell him this year, or risk losing him on a free transfer next season, with some big clubs circling for his signature.
