By Mark Atkinson
Hearts head coach Derek McInnes is refusing to give up hope of striker Lawrence Shankland signing a new deal with the club despite the two parties being at an impasse. Shankland鈥檚 contract at Tynecastle expired last month and he is currently a free agent. Hearts have made an offer which would reportedly make him the highest paid player at the club, but the 29-year-old continues to weigh up his future. There is interest from sides in the English Championship and Saudi Arabia but for now, he remains unattached. Shankland was pictured last month training in Dubai and did not travel with Hearts to their pre-season camp in the south of Spain. McInnes took over at Tynecastle last month and immediately made it clear that he would like to work with Shankland, who he managed at Aberdeen last season. Despite not having a stellar 2024/25 campaign, the ex-Kilmarnock boss believes he can get the best out the player, who has netted 68 goals in a 137 appearances across three seasons at Hearts. McInnes was unable to shed any further light on negotiations between Shankland and the club, but reiterated his desire to work with him and did not close the door on the Scotland striker returning to Hearts. 鈥淚鈥檝e not got any update, I鈥檓 leaving that to the club to try and resolve,鈥 McInnes told Hearts TV from the club鈥檚 Spanish base. 鈥淢e personally, I鈥檓 not going to give up on it. It鈥檚 not a no. I think we鈥檝e got to keep that door open and we just have to hope that it can be resolved. But ultimately, we鈥檙e not in a position where we can say categorically one way or the other. And while we still have a chance, we鈥檒l see where it takes us. 鈥淚 think I鈥檝e made it clear that Lawrence is a boy I want to work with. As a manager, you set out your targets and you want to work with the players you want to work with. I鈥檓 well used to in my career not getting everything that I want, but I would love to have the opportunity for Lawrence to be with us this season. And while we still have a chance, we鈥檒l hang on to that.鈥 Hearts have pre-season friendlies against St Mirren and Crawley Town over in Spain ahead of their Premier Sports Cup campaign getting under way on Saturday, July 12 when they welcome Dunfermline Athletic to Tynecastle. McInnes has been active in the transfer market since taking over at Hearts, bringing in right-back Christian Borchgrevnik, centre-half Stuart Findlay, defensive midfielder Oisin McEntee, winger Alexandros Kyziridis and forward Claudio Braga. They have also agreed a pre-contract deal with winger Islam Chesnokov and continue to negotiate with his current club FC Tobol in Kazakhstan over a fee to sign him now rather than wait until January.