Heart of Midlothian

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Scott Fraser has been hugely impressed by the work done at Hearts by head coach Derek McInnes, with his former team "absolutely flying" at the top of the Premiership.

The Tynecastle side are unbeaten in seven league games and sit two points above champions Celtic.

McInnes takes his team to third-placed Kilmarnock on Saturday, having left Rugby Park at the end of last season.

Hearts cast the net wide in search of players over the summer, with arrivals from an assortment of leagues across Europe.

Portuguese forward Claudio Braga came from Norway, Greek winger Alexandros Kyziridis was in Slovakia, Burkina Faso international Pierre Landry Kabore was found in Estonia, while Albanian Sabah Kerjota had been playing in the lower reaches of Italian football.

"Recruitment has been quite remarkable, with the players they've brought in and where they've got them from," said Fraser, who spent the second half of the 2023-24 season on loan with Hearts.

Talking to the BBC Scottish Football Podcast, the Ross County midfielder added: "For them to gel so quickly and take on what Derek and his coaching staff are wanting is a big, big plus."

With Braga and Kyziridis chipping in with important goals, Fraser said: "I think it's taken the burden off Lawrence Shankland to be the main goalscorer.

"And we still haven't seen Ageu [the club's record signing who is making his way back from injury]. The way Derek talks, he's going to be an important player for them.

"Then there are guys like Craig Halkett and Harry Milne, who have been revelations this season, and that's testament to the coaching."

Heart of Midlothian intend to offer 30-year-old centre-half Craig Halkett a new contract as reward for becoming one of the Scottish Premiership leaders' mainstays again this season and there is a will on both sides to reach an agreement following initial talks. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

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Oisin McEntee says he "expected big things" when he joined Hearts in the summer but to find themselves at the top of the table mid-way through October is "unbelievable."

The 24-year-old midfielder insists there's a "really good mood" in the squad and manager Derek McInnes is the reason the Jambos have the "belief."

"When I arrived I expected big things, but obviously we're doing unbelievable," said McEntee.

"I don't know if I expected it to be this good, but it's been unbelievable since I came in, I can't complain. It's a really exciting time.

"With any team, you don't know how well you're going to do. You just have to keep plugging away and playing it game by game. That's what we've been doing and we've been picking up wins and there's no reason why we can't win more."

Hearts are two points clear of Celtic at the top of the Premiership table and are on course for their fifth win in a row if they can beat Kilmarnock on Saturday.

"The belief in the changing room is that we can win every game," McEntee added.

"The manager's played as big a part as everyone thinks. He's the leader of it. He's set us up tactically brilliantly for every game and given us that belief that we can win games of football.

"You turn up to training every day and you're training with players that are just unbelievable. Even the boys that aren't playing and haven't played as many minutes this season, you're watching them in training thinking they're unbelievable players. It definitely gives you that belief.

"This is where you want to be and there's a really good mood with all the boys. We're just trying to keep that going. I think it breeds confidence going into games and that's where results come."

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• Kilmarnock have lost both of their last two Scottish Premiership games against Heart of Midlothian, as many as their previous 13 beforehand (W7 D4 L2).

• This will be Heart of Midlothian boss Derek McInnes' first league match against Kilmarnock since leaving the club. McInnes has only lost one of his last 30 top-flight matches against Killie (W23 D6), and is unbeaten in his last 16 away games against them at this level (W13 D3) since a 3-2 defeat with St Johnstone in February 2010.

• Kilmarnock have won both of their last two league games without conceding, but haven't won three in a row with a clean sheet each time in the Scottish Premiership since April 2018 under Steve Clarke.

• Heart of Midlothian have won 10 of their last 11 league games (D1), including each of their last five away from home. Not since January 2011 have Hearts had a longer away winning run in the top-flight (seven).

• David Watson has scored in both of Kilmarnock's last two home league games; the last player to score in three successive home appearances for Killie in the top-flight while aged 20 or younger was Steven Naismith in March 2007.

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Squad depth at Tynecastle can help Heart of Midlothian sustain their strong start to the season, believes former head coach Robbie Neilson.

The Edinburgh side remain unbeaten in the Scottish Premiership, with a two-point lead over champions Celtic after seven matches.

Summer arrivals Claudio Braga, Alexandros Kyziridis, Oisin McEntee and Stuart Findlay have hit the ground running, while the likes of Lawrence Shankland, Cammy Devlin and Craig Halkett appear re-energised by manager Derek McInnes.

"The issue outside the Old Firm is when you get to 15, 20, 25 games in, you've got guys who are starting to fatigue and you don't have the rotation, you might pick up injuries," said Neilson on the BBC Scottish Football Podcast.

"But when I look at the squad now, there's almost two top players for every position.

"Generally, teams start to fall away in December and January when the schedule starts to get bit more hectic, but I think Hearts will have the quality to rotate.

"Hearts can beat everyone else in the league and take points off Celtic and Rangers, so it's a really interesting challenge at the moment."

Investment from Tony Bloom, along with access to a data company with links to the Brighton owner has helped with recruitment, while Hearts have more midweeks off than the Old Firm clubs since they are not involved in Europe this season.

"With Tony Bloom being there, when they get to January, they'll spend again," added Neilson, now coaching in Belgium with Lommel.

"If they're in a position where they can push, I think they'll do it again.

"When you see what Tony Bloom has done at Brighton and also at Union Saint-Gilloise, he's got a history of success.

"I still think it will take a few windows to really bulk that Hearts squad up and get the quality within that and the belief. But, if you're looking at the table at this moment, it's unbelievable opportunity not just to split the Old Firm but potentially take over the two of them."

McInnes, a former player at Ibrox, has dismissed any talk of a move to Rangers, insisting he is only interested in matters relating to Hearts.

And Neilson, who had two spells in charge of the club, has no concerns over the speculation upsetting the mood at Tynecastle.

"Derek's an extremely experienced manager and he can bat it off," he added.

"It's credit to him and his staff that he's getting talked about in terms of the Rangers job, but he'll be fully focused.

"Yes, Derek has a huge history with Rangers but he's had a fantastic start to the season. He's got an unbelievable opportunity to really do something that has not been done for generations."

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Hearts boss Derek McInnes has been speaking to the media before the visit to Kilmarnock on Saturday.

Here are the key lines from his media conference:

• He said he is aware of Hearts' strong start to the season and says "the test now is to try and maintain it".

• After being linked with the vacant Rangers job, he said has no problem in dealing with speculation about his future and says "the flip side of that as a manager is you're normally batting off questions about your job when things aren't going well".

• The Hearts boss acknowledged the "challenges" of the next block of games before the international break.

• He said he was "disappointed" he didn't get the chance to say goodbye properly at Rugby Park but that he still has friends at Kilmarnock.

• McInnes added that although he's disappointed in how it ended at Killie, he feels he "did everything right" for the Ayrshire club and insists he only wants them "to do well".

• The Hearts manager said he is expecting a "very tough game" on Saturday and that Stuart Kettlewell has "started his tenure well" as his replacement.

• He confirmed he had no fresh injuries for the weekend and hopes that Brazilian midfielder Ageu may be back for Celtic game next week.

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Hearts boss Derek McInnes says the manner of his departure from Kilmarnock was not ideal - but he feels comfortable with the way he handled himself.

Top-of-the-table Hearts head to the Ayrshire club on Saturday, whom McInnes left in May to take over at Tynecastle.

"I was disappointed I never got the chance to say goodbye properly," he said.

"I get the emotion of it all and how quickly it turned towards the back end of the season, but I can look myself in the mirror and say I did everything right by Kilmarnock.

"I'd said to them that if Hearts made the approach that I wanted to speak to them, and that was the only thing that probably didn't sit well with a lot of people at Kilmarnock.

"The main people at the club were all fully aware. When I look back now, I made it clear through my agent to Hearts and Kilmarnock that I wasn't going to speak to until Kilmarnock were safe. I feel good about that.

"I felt it was the right thing to do. I wanted no distractions and we made sure once Kilmarnock were safe, I was hoping then there could be a natural opportunity to speak to Hearts.

"I took the game against Motherwell, it was Billy who had asked me to take the team and I went along with it, but I thought for obvious reasons it was always going to be a difficult once it became clear I was keen to speak to Hearts.

"That's all in the past. I had some brilliant times at Kilmarnock. My family were fully invested in the club, three-and-a-half years there.

"Our promotion, fourth spot, European adventures, the majority were good times. I have only good feelings towards Kilmarnock and the people there."

Former defender Ryan Stevenson thought Hearts title talk would come further into the season but if they win their next two matches he agrees it's lift off. (Daily Record)

Read the rest of Wednesday's gossip.

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Derek McInnes insists he remains firmly focused on his job as Hearts head coach amid speculation linking him with the managerial vacancy at Rangers.

McInnes rejected a move to Ibrox eight years ago when he was Aberdeen manager but has been linked to the job again after Steven Gerrard withdrew from the process to replace Russell Martin.

The former Rangers midfielder has been at Tynecastle less than five months but has his side sitting top of the Premiership, two points in front of Brendan Rodgers' Celtic and 11 points ahead of Rangers, who flounder in eighth after seven matches.

Many fans and pundits have tipped McInnes for the Ibrox job given his knowledge of Scottish football and success with the Dons and now Hearts.

"For a manager you're normally fighting speculation off if you're not winning games about trying to keep your job," McInnes told Sky Sports.

"And normally if you're doing well then there's maybe a bit of speculation.

"My job here is firmly at Hearts. I'm really enjoying it here.

"I've wanted to be here for a long time, I'm really enjoying my work here.

"We feel we've started something now and we want to try and make sure we follow up a strong start to the season and maintain it and see where it takes us.

"I firmly believe we can be successful here."

Greg Playfair
Fan writer

It's hard to believe that we're fast approaching the end of 2025 and with it, Ann Budge's tenure running Hearts.

Given that, I've been asking myself whether Hearts are in their best position off and on the pitch in decades?

I don't want to be controversial and bring other clubs into view as a comparison, but by and large in Scottish football, being successful off and on the pitch at the same time rarely happens. The only club you might attribute to that is Celtic, although if you read their fan's voice column they might tell you differently.

The fact of the matter is Budge has transformed Hearts off the field in her 11-and-a-half year stewardship.

We can point to a new main stand, complete with hotel and restaurant, as well as various other improvements around Tynecastle from a new museum, memorial garden and even things like big screens on the concourse.

There's been the investment into the women's sides, with the senior side becoming a challenger in the SWPL. There's also been the attraction of financial benefactors James Anderson and now new shareholder Tony Bloom.

The bottom line is that Budge has revitalised us after many Jambos had sleepless nights during the administration days, wondering if the club would even survive.

Of course, Budge has come under plenty of criticism over the past decade, with the main gripe being her loyalty to individuals.

It's fair to say that some of her decision making affected the product on the football pitch and the team hasn't always hit its potential in that time.

Right now though, Hearts are in rude health in all aspects and Jambos are right to expect that to continue into 2026 and beyond.

Head coach Derek McInnes, probably can't believe his luck in getting the job when he has.

McInnes has been around the block for the best part of two decades in Scotland and I've not been in any fear of him being wooed by the Rangers vacant gig.

Privately, I'm sure he'll tell you Hearts are a much more attractive proposition than Rangers and the many fires he'd have to put out there.

I said last week that if we didn't finish second, it would be a missed opportunity, but I'm not going to start any title chat just yet – we'd need Celtic to self-sabotage over the next few weeks and months to start imagining maroon ribbons on the league trophy.

It's Kilmarnock next - we've only suffered defeat once in the past five league games at Rugby Park and picked up three wins in that time.

Given our own good form this year, you'd expect us to depart with the victory as well but at some point, we're going to be seen as a massive scalp for opponents. My fear is that Kilmarnock boss Stuart Kettlewell believes that to be the case and we face a turgid battle for 90 minutes.

I hope I'm wrong given the options we can call upon from our bench and I hope to see the inclusion of Burkina Faso hero, Landry Pierre Kabore, on the bench following his hat-trick the other night for his country.

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Derek McInnes has won his second straight Premiership manager of the month award after Hearts won both their league matches in September.

Lawrence Shankland was named player of the month and Alexandros Kyziridis won goal of the month for a long-range curler against Falkirk as Hearts swept the board for September's awards.

McInnes' side beat Rangers 2-0 at Ibrox before sweeping aside Falkirk 3-0 at Tynecastle.

They are top of the table with 19 points from seven matches.

"It's nice to be recognised for this award again but it really is a team effort here, which has been highlighted by Lawrence Shankland and Alexandros Kyziridis also winning awards," McInnes said.

"It feeds into the positivity at the club. We've had a strong start and we hope to maintain it as we head into some big games."

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Pierre Landry Kabore came off the bench to score a second-half hat-trick for Burkina Faso and secure a potentially pivotal three points in World Cup qualifying.

Summer signing Kabore replaced Brentford's big-money forward Dango Ouattara against Ethiopia after an hour of goalless action.

Minutes after coming on, the 24-year-old fired his side ahead before netting what looked like the crucial goal as the visitors struck one of their own back.

But Kabore, who has struggled for game time at Tynecastle, completed his hat-trick and ensured the victory for his country with a stoppage-time strike.

He is the second Hearts player to score a hat-trick on international duty this window after fellow forward James Wilson found three for Scotland Under-21s against Gibraltar.

Burkina Faso - who are second in Group A, five points behind Egypt - now shift into second place in the best second-place standings in the African World Cup qualifiers, with the top four advancing to a play-off.

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Hearts' opening goal in last month's 2-0 win over Rangers at Ibrox should have been disallowed for a handball against Lawrence Shankland, Scottish FA head of referees Willie Collum has stated.

Collum told the Scottish FA's VAR Review Show: "It should have been brought back. Lawrence Shankland's arm is too far out here.

"There is a deflection, but the arm is out far enough to be given. In our opinion, this goal should have been disallowed."

The former referee also backed the decision to disallow a Rangers goal for a foul by midfielder Thelo Aasgaard against Hearts goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow, although he added that VAR would not have intervened if the goal had been given.

"The Rangers player is focused on the goalkeeper and moves towards the goalkeeper," he said. "There is a hand on the chest area - then eventually a hand on the arm."

Meanwhile, Collum also explained that Hibernian forward Martin Boyle had a goal correctly disallowed at Ibrox as a factual overturn because the ball hit his hand immediately before he scored.

Hearts have identified a preferred candidate to replace Ann Budge as chair and there is expected to be further change at board level with one director understood to be stepping down at the club's annual meeting. (Joel Sked on X), external

Read Saturday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Macaulay Tait says Hearts wanted him as part of their squad this season, but the 20-year-old midfielder preferred to join Livingston on loan because he would not be guaranteed game time at Tynecastle. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Former Hearts defender David Weir, who until recently worked with Tony Bloom at Brighton & Hove Albion, believes the businessman will invest further in the Tynecastle squad in January to bolster their bid at the top of the Scottish Premiership. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Read Friday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Derek McInnes has reassured Heart of Midlothian that he is committed to his job as head coach and keen to build for the future amid suggestions Rangers might be interested in their former midfielder. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Hearts midfielder Cammy Devlin is "not in a hurry to leave", with his agent and the Scottish Premiership leaders in talks about a new contract and the 27-year-old adding: "I'd love to stay." (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Hearts' squad market value has risen by £1.75m in the past year, while Aberdeen's has dropped by £0.95m. (Transfermarkt), external

Read Thursday's Scottish gossip

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Macaulay Tait hopes his impressive form at Livingston will result in a Scotland Under-21 debut against Gibraltar at Dens Park on Thursday.

Tait has started 12 matches in all competitions for David Martindale's side this season, after struggling to establish himself in the first team at parent club Hearts.

"It's been exactly what I wanted when I left Hearts, so to make that step up into the top flight and to be playing every week's been brilliant," Tait said, who also spent the second half of last season on loan at Livingston.

"I wanted to take the confidence from last season into this and continue to push myself and I'm really enjoying it and I think now I'm starting to grow in confidence and I believe that I can actually play at this level."

Martindale has praised Tait's impact in West Lothian and the midfielder himself is pleased to be rewarded with a call-up to Scot Gemmill's squad for the European Championship qualifiers against Gibraltar and Azerbaijan.

"It was really nice to get that recognition," Tait said. "It's something I've not really been involved with so it's been nice. It was something I had in the back of my mind, to try and get into the squad, but to finally do it, it's been really good.

"Hopefully I can play as much as I can and help the boys win these two games and get us on track."

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

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Much has been made of Hearts' electric start to the season, as well as the relative struggles of dominant force Celtic.

The Tynecastle side top the Premiership with 19 points from seven matches, the only blip a thrilling 3-3 draw against Motherwell.

Brendan Rodgers' Celtic are two points back and also unbeaten, but have failed to fire at times in attack with goalless draws against Rangers and Hibs.

But what do the underlying numbers tell us about the top two's starts?

Well, firstly, Hearts' impressive record is no fluke.

Their 16 goals are the most of any side in the top flight, while their 223 touches in the opposition box are only bettered by Celtic.

Derek McInnes' side have had 41 shots on target from 105 total efforts with only Celtic and Dundee United (both 42) having more.

Hearts' goals have come from an expected goals (xG) value of 11.03, which indicates a high level of shooting - a notion backed up by their expected goals on target (xGOT) value of 15.60.

Lawrence Shankland, Stuart Findlay and Alexandros Kyziridis are all outperforming their xG.

Essentially, Hearts' shots on target have been more likely to go in than would be expected from the positions they are shooting from.

Celtic's issue hasn't been creating chances, as their shots on target and touches in the opposition box show.

It has been finishing those chances that has hindered them both domestically and in Europe, as evidenced by the 11 Premiership goals they have scored. Motherwell and Kilmarnock have matched that tally with Dundee United on 12 and Hearts out in front.

Those 11 goals have come from an xG of 14.04, again highlighting a poor level of shooting.

The defending champions have hit the woodwork eight times and their shot conversion rate of 9.7% is eighth in the division.

Their xGOT is 15.88 though, which does suggest impressive goalkeeping performances from opposition teams.

Defensively, both teams perform well with Celtic conceding the fewest goals in the division (three) while Hearts' six against is joint second best with St Mirren.

Kasper Schmeichel has made nine saves, the same as Hearts goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow, who replaced Zander Clark (five saves) between the posts.

The numbers show that Hearts are matching - if not bettering - Celtic in performance as well as results, but only time will tell if they can maintain this level against a side used to staying the course.

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Cammy Devlin has been recalled by Australia for a friendly double-header with World Cup hosts Canada and USA.

Craig Gordon is back in the Scotland squad for World Cup qualifiers at home to Greece and Belarus.

Landry Kabore is with Burkina Faso for World Cup qualifiers against Sierra Leone and Ethiopia.

Kenneth Vargas, who is currently on loan at Herediano, is part of the Costa Rica squad to take on Honduras and Nicaragua in World Cup qualifiers.

Hearts plan to resist any attempt by Rangers to lure head coach Derek McInnes to Ibrox. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Former Rangers forward Greg Stewart does not believe it would be easy for the Ibrox club to sign up McInnes. (Record), external

Tony Bloom believes his influence and investment at Hearts can improve Scottish football's standing in Europe and obtain more lucrative television deals. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Scotland assistant coach Steven Naismith backs veteran Hearts goalkeeper Craig Gordon, 43, to make it to the World Cup with the national team. (Herald - subscription required), external

Scotland Under-21 goalkeeper Liam McFarlane, of Hearts, was given the chance to train with the senior national squad this week. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish gossip

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Lawrence Shankland was avoiding title talk as he was named Scottish Premiership player of the month, the Hearts striker saying his side are "just enjoying where we are now".

Hearts lead reigning champions Celtic by two points after seven games.

"It is a great start," Shankland told Sky Sports. "Obviously, this many games into the season to get the points on the table is always important.

"There's a really positive feel about the place."

Pressed on whether Hearts can maintain a title challenge, the 30-year-old Scotland striker replied: "It is a good feeling to be there just now.

"Obviously off the back of last season, there was a lot of frustration, so I think the boys are just enjoying it, where we are now."

Shankland scored three goals in Hearts' two September games, taking his total to seven for the season, his strike against Falkirk making him the top scorer in the 12 years since the SPFL was established.

Asked about the role of new head coach Derek McInnes in his personal and club resurgence, he added: "He's been great obviously.

"He's had a lot of new bodies, new players, bringing freshness to the building and he's had to gel that over pre-season and it looks like we have managed to do that so far.

"So we'll just look to keep building on that. He's obviously a good manager and he's been about Scottish football for a long time and he knows his way around the game, he has set us up really well and things are going well at the minute."

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Lawrence Shankland has not given up on his World Cup dream despite missing out on the current squad poised to face Greece and Belarus in European qualifying Group C.

Steve Clarke decided to stick with the same strikers who helped his side draw in Denmark and win away to Belarus in last month's opening games of the campaign.

As the Scotland squad prepare to host Greece on Thursday, Hearts striker Shankland was picking up his Scottish Premiership player of the month award.

It was reward for scoring three goals in two games during September to become the league's top marksman this season - and the leading scorer over the 12 years since the SPFL was established - while helping his side to the top of the table.

Asked if he was especially disappointed not to be in Clarke's current squad given those facts, Shankland told Sky Sports: "You always want to be involved if you can.

"Obviously there's a World Cup not too far round the corner as well, so hopefully the boys can keep getting the results.

"I'll keep doing what I do at club level and hopefully if the opportunity arises again then you just stay ready for it.

"Everybody who is Scottish around the world would want to be at a World Cup.

"I have had the experience of being at the Euros and stuff in the last campaign and you just stay ready and keep doing what you do for your club."