Hearts: Captain Danny Wilson to leave Hearts in summer

Hearts captain Danny Wilson has scored five goals this season

Hearts captain Danny Wilson is to leave the Scottish Championship title winners at the end of the season.

The 23-year-old defender has triggered a clause in his contract that will terminate his deal with the Edinburgh club with a year left still to run.

That clause also allowed Hearts to trigger the option to end his contract.

Wilson, who has five Scotland caps, was recently linked with a move to Celtic, but there is also interest in the player from England and abroad.

The central defender already has experience of English football, being sold by Rangers to Liverpool for £2m in 2010 after one season in the Ibrox side's first team.

Wilson only made nine appearances for the Premier League club and had spells on loan to Championship outfits Blackpool and Bristol City.

His next loan spell was back to Scottish top flight with Hearts in January 2013 and signed a three-year contract once his Anfield deal expired in the summer of that year.

Wilson was actively involved in raising funds that helped keep the club alive while in administration and suffered relegation last season.

He has made 32 appearances this term, scoring five goals, as Hearts secured a return to the Premiership by winning the Championship title by a substantial margin.

However, Wilson will miss Saturday's trip to Cowdenbeath through suspension.