Heart of Midlothian mainly relied on Lawrence Shankland and Josh Ginnelly for goals during the 2022/23 season, as the duo scored 41 goals between them and with the English winger departing the club this summer, it will be up to the other players to step up.
Steven Naismith certainly has a challenge on his hands in terms of improving on their fourth-place finish in the Premiership last term, especially considering they have made only one signing with a couple of weeks to go until the first league fixture.
Who have Hearts signed?
Michael McGovern has made the move North of the border from Norwich City on a free transfer, but at 39-years-old, he is hardly a signing which will excite the supporters.
The Tynecastle side are also close to securing a move for Australian midfielder Calem Nieuwenhof, who could be their first outfield signing of the transfer window, while defender Frankie Kent is also being linked with a move to Scotland.
Naismith will still have to bolster his attacking options however while also reviving players such as Barrie McKay and Alan Forrest in order to give them that extra edge in the attacking third next season.
How many goals has Alan Forrest scored for Hearts?
The next highest scorers for Hearts after Shankland and Ginnelly were Forest (five) and McKay (four), which is quite the drop from the 28 and 13 goals the former two netted across the entirety of last season.
McKay has proven to be an excellent attacking option for the club during his two years in Edinburgh, already notching up 25 goal contributions – six goals and 19 assists – and if he could just up his scoring rate slightly, Hearts could find themselves in a far better position during 2023/24.
Forrest only arrived at the Jambos last summer, signing from Livingston and was praised by journalist Craig Fowler, who said:
“I’m a little skeptical as to whether he can step up and be more consistent than the likes of Gino or GMS, but in terms of squad building he’s a very good fit.”
Having shone for Livi and Ayr United previously, scoring 18 and 55 goals respectively, there were hopes that he could have a similar impact at Hearts.
The 26-year-old played in 47 games for the club as they secured qualification to the Europa Conference League group stages, yet his tally of just five goals is underwhelming considering his talents.
Despite starting just 16 Premiership matches, Forrest did rank fourth across the squad for goals (four) while also ranking in the top ten for shots per game (one) and successful dribbles per game (0.5), suggesting that although he didn’t get as many opportunities as anticipated, he still contributed well enough.
He has demonstrated that if he plays higher up the pitch, goals will arrive sooner rather than later and ahead of next season, Naismith should deploy him as a left-winger as opposed to a slightly deeper role and this could get him firing while also taking the pressure off of Shankland in the process.
