Heart defender John Souttar has refused to be drawn into any discussion about his future, amid previous inks to a host of Championship clubs including QPR, Stoke City and Nottingham Forest.
Souttar, 25, has been subject to a lot of transfer speculation heading into January
At the start of last month, reports coming out of Scotland revealed that all of Blackburn Rovers, Middlesbrough and Stoke City were looking at the defender.
Soon after, the likes of Birmingham City, Luton Town and QPR were all said to have joined the race, with both Nottingham Forest and Swansea City having now been linked with a move for the defender as well, as well as Rangers and Celtic.
Stoke were reported to be leading the race a few weeks ago, with Hearts also said to be weighing up a potential January sale with his contract out next summer.
Now though, Souttar has spoken out about all of the above speculation, But he’s solely focused on playing for Hearts as it stands, having finally found some footing following battles with injury.
He told The Courier:
“Before my injuries, I think it [transfer speculation] would have affected me more. Now, I don’t take anything for granted. I go into every game completely focused on the match and what I need to do.
“Everything else gets blanked out because I’m just thankful to be on the pitch. The older I get, and the experiences I’ve picked up, the easier it has got to deal with speculation.
“I’m loving my football just now. To be playing without any worries about injuries is brilliant — it’s the best I’ve felt in my career, physically — and that’s all that matters.”
A pre-contract agreement could well be made in January should Hearts not manage to secure Souttar’s future. He’s no shortage of interested parties and with club’s starting to pick up a lot of injuries, expect many to be in the market for players next month.
He’s a fine player and at 25-years-old he’ll soon be coming into the prime of his career, which he’ll no doubt want to spend playing at the highest level he possibly can.
