When it emerged Heart of Midlothian were set to sign a Costa Rican forward in the summer, excitement levels amongst the club's support were dialed up a notch or three.

Over the years, certainly since the beginning of Vladimir Romanov's turbulent tenure at the helm of the football club, supporters have grown familiar with a left-field recruit. A 21-year-old attacker from Central America with plenty of potential very much fell into that category. A tattoo on his neck only further endeared him to those amongst the fan base who look back nostalgically to the what-if possibility of Mauricio Pinilla.

With his goal against The Spartans, Kenneth Vargas has now doubled the Chilean heartthrob's tally for the club as he continues to build on his consistency and confidence on the pitch and reputation amongst fans off of it.

Finishing the first half of the season strongly with key strikes against Ross County and Livingston and then picking it up again after a winter break that saw him return to his homeland, has set him up for an even more important role, potentially as Lawrence Shankland's sidekick in the Hearts attack. 

"I think he has a more natural striker mindset and mentality, the way he plays when the ball goes wide he wants to get in the box," head coach Steven Naismith explained. "He doesn't want to hang wide.

"But I think he can play wide. Against Rosenborg or PAOK at home, you could see he was very dangerous 1v1 but I prefer having players who can do that and understand that. Going back to his age and experience, he has picked up these different things that you need in each position and for such a young guy it's a really good trait to have."

His age is something Naismith was keen to stress. Vargas has traveled to a different continent where he has largely been on his own but adapted well to a change in culture and weather, integrated to become a popular figure in the squad, while he continues to develop his English. 

How he has handled all of that shows that there is a maturity to the player.

"People forget his age," Naismith said. "He's young, the natural ability, the characteristics of him as a player are more beyond his years, the way he uses his body and how his touch is, stuff like that. He has probably been inconsistent in the first half of the season until the end there and he's picked up. Confidence does a lot of things for you. He's full of confidence, he's shown that and he's now scoring goals which is a big part of what people define whether he is good or not.

"I think the level we are at as a squad has helped him. That intelligence of understanding what to do to get into these positions is what he’s good at. That’s a natural instinct from him. It’s a good trait for a young player. It’s just the consistency levels of performances, of goal return, of goal involvement return. The older he gets that will be more consistent. But if he keeps going where he is going he’s a real prospect."

The loan deal to bring Vargas to the club was a shrewd one that suited all parties. Hearts and the player could get a good look at one another without being tied to a long-term contract. Perform well and there is the option to make the move permanent, netting Herediano in his native Costa Rica a fee.

The player's trajectory in maroon suggests it could well be an easy decision for Hearts to secure the player on a long-term deal.

"He’s a big prospect," Naismith said. "He is someone I think brings value to us and if it’s something that can be done I’m sure we will look at it because he’s definitely someone with good attributes that are hard to find in forwards never mind in young players."

Vargas should be partnered in attack by Shankland against Dundee on Tuesday night's Premiership fixture at Tynecastle Park. The club's top scorer returned to training ahead of the fixture having sat out of the win at Ainslie Park due to illness. Cammy Devlin and Liam Boyce, however, will continue to miss out.

"He's back involved in the squad," Naismith said. "The reason he wasn’t in the building is because the medical staff assessed him and thought he shouldn’t be here. Now he’s allowed back, he’s trained and he can be available if he’s come through that all right."