The CEO of Hearts has claimed that there was “never any hint” of Rangers interest in Lawrence Shankland due to the Jambos’ astonishing valuation of the striker.
Rangers were routinely mentioned as potential Shankland suitors in the January transfer window, with the boyhood bluenose offered a contract by Hearts to ward off would-be buyers.
But according to Hearts CEO Andrew McKinlay that had already been done by the Edinburgh club’s quite astonishing valuation of the striker.
Claiming that it would take a Scottish record transfer for Rangers, or anyone else for that matter, to sign Lawrence Shankland, McKinlay reckons the valuation warned suitors off.
Hearts’ staggering Lawrence Shankland valuation
The biggest transfer between two Scottish clubs is Celtic’s £4.5m purchase of Scott Brown from Hibs in 2007, meaning Rangers would have to pay more than that to sign Lawrence Shankland.
Given the Scotland international is 28-years-old and enters the final year of his contract in the summer, it’s a fee which will reduce significantly in six months.
According to McKinlay, the Lawrence Shankland valuation is based on what Hearts would stand to lose if they failed to secure third place in the Scottish Premiership and automatic European group stage football.
“I can only speak personally, but I didn’t believe we would get a bid from anyone,” said McKinlay, speaking at the opening of Hearts’ Tynecastle Park Hotel, quoted by the Scotsman.
“Now, I don’t know if that is because we said it would take an exceptional price – I have no idea – but you still get to transfer deadline day and you wonder if someone is going to come in with even a silly bid, or throw something in. But absolutely nothing.
“There were some numbers – and those numbers, without going into detail, were predicated on what happens if we sell Lawrence and we don’t get group-stage football.
“And we know exactly what that’s worth, so it had to be in that ballpark and upward of that ballpark for it to make any sense.
“That’s not to say we wouldn’t get third without Lawrence – but it certainly would have been a massive high risk.
“I think people forget that the Scottish transfer record sits at £4.6million between Scottish clubs [Hibs and Celtic] and that was Scott Brown a good few years ago. And it would have to be in excess of something like that.
“Were we really expecting the Scottish transfer record to be broken? I don’t think so – and there was never any hint that it was going to be.”
Rangers-linked striker turns down Tynecastle offer
Whilst you’ll be hard-pressed to find many Ibrox fans who would’ve supported spending such a substantial fee on Lawrence Shankland, you need to give Hearts credit.
The striker is a matchwinner and potentially the difference between another season of European football and toiling in the Premiership.
Lawrence Shankland has undoubtedly been the form forward in Scottish football this season, adding goals number 20 and 21 against Dundee before addressing the transfer chatter.
That double only highlighted Hearts’ stance and interestingly, McKinlay also noted that Shankland’s camp had rebuffed a contract offer, claiming the deal “wouldn’t be acceptable” to the striker as things stand.
Reports at the time had claimed the deal would’ve made Shankland the best-paid Hearts player in a decade.
Whilst we suspect the talk will ramp up again going into the summer, Rangers may have already pressed a £35m plug into the gap in the club’s forward line.
