Heart of Midlothian are expected to have another busy summer transfer window.
After bringing in 11 recruits for the 2025/26 season, Hearts are once again getting their business done as quickly as possible.
Derek McInnes’ men will find out their opponents for the Champions League qualifiers two weeks on Tuesday, with the second-round qualifier taking place at the end of July.
Already in the market to strengthen the squad over the summer, it has now become a bigger challenge after Lawrence Shankland moved along the M8 to Rangers.
Hearts are now on the lookout for a replacement for the Scotland International. And while it may be hard to find a like-for-like replacement, Jamestown Analytics will likely have targets already in place.
Below, we look at five targets, all in a slightly different mould but all who share at least some of the traits that made Shankland a success in his four seasons in Gorgie: a leader with intelligent hold-up play, creativity and goalscoring ability. Each of these suggested options will cover at least two of the criteria.
Robbie Ure
Age: 22
Nationality: Scottish
Current club: IK Sirius, Sweden
Transfermarkt value: £1.9 million
It was suggested on one of our recent YouTube videos that Hearts could once again break their record transfer fee in the near future and if that is the case, a good bet would be on pushing out the boat to fill a Lawrence-Shankland-shaped hole.
That’s what it would take to bring in someone like Robbie Ure, a Scottish striker plying his trade in Sweden. Transfermarkt has him valued at €2.2 million (£1.9m), more than the outlay for Ageu less than 12 months ago.
However, after another two goals at the weekend, his 12th in 15 games in all competitions so far this season, perhaps he has already priced himself out of a move to Tynecastle.
Ure is potentially the only player on the list that will be a relatively known quantity to supporters. The 22-year-old came through the Rangers academy before moving to the Anderlecht B team and then settling in Sweden with IK Sirius. He’s not slow, but isn’t the quickest.
He’s good with his back to goal, happy to take in long balls, using his body well to hold off defenders, often as the player furthest up the park. When receiving the ball, he’s intelligent and has good vision, always aware of where the touch should take him or the next pass should be, and uses his creativity to bring his team-mates into play.
In the final third he loves to get between the sticks, getting into central positions to score goals. He makes intelligent movement inside the box to find space, and when he does get the ball, he is an effective finisher with a 25% goal rate conversion this season.
His movement isn’t just good in the final third, he also makes good runs deeper on the park.
The striker is the most similar player to Shankland on this list. Albeit, a younger version in the how he likes to stay high up the park if possible. He is less bothered about dropping deep and having play go through him.
He will cost more than the others on the list, and what Hearts are used to spending, but for a 22-year-old Scottish player with a very high ceiling, it may be worthwhile.
Roman Čerepkai
Age: 24
Nationality: Slovakian
Current club: Kosice, Slovakia
Transfermarkt value: £430,000
This time last year, Hearts picked up Alexandros Kyziridis from the Slovakian top flight and that is where Roman Cerepkai is currently plying his trade.
The Slovak national has had a successful season, with 13 goals and 10 assists in all competitions.
He has been capped 20 times for his country’s under-21s and came through the renowned Slovan Bratislava academy. However, he didn’t quite make the cut and dropped to lower-level teams.
He’s now had his first real breakout season, and we have seen with some previous Jamestown signings at Hearts that they sometimes swoop in at the first sign of them showing their talent consistently.
Cerepkai is more of a creator than a goalscorer, yet he is good at both. He’s a man of many talents, sometimes used on the left wing and in a deeper central role, at times even in a central midfield role. This speaks volumes as to how impressive he is in possession, though he is best as a No.9 or false 9. Like Shankland, he likes to start high but drop deeper to get in possession and help build up the play.
While he takes up good positions in the box and is a good finisher, Cerepkai could look to focus on that side of his game a bit more. He has all the tools to be a 15-to-20 goal-a-season striker, but would need to spend more time closer to goal to do so.
Romano Postema
Age: 24
Nationality: Dutch
Current club: FC Emmen, the Netherlands
Transfermarkt value: £870,000
From a distance at least, Romano Postema resembles Liam Boyce somewhat and he also shares a lot of similar qualities to the Northern Irishman regarding his playing style, particularly his build-up play.
Most recently playing in the second tier of Dutch football with Emmen, on loan from Groningen, he is slightly more towards a No.10 than a No.9. He is a very intelligent footballer, and prefers to find pockets of space to get on the ball, rather than initiating a physical battle.
Postema likes to take the ball and drive with it, picking smart passes before looking to get on the end of chance in the final third. He’s both the creator and the finisher in his team.
He has 24 goals and got seven assists in 35 games this season, following on from 18 goals and four assists in the previous campaign.
Now he will return to his parent club in the Dutch top flight and could be in their plans for the coming season. If he were to have an impressive season with Groningen, it would likely price him out of a move to Hearts.
Micah Mbick
Age: 19
Nationality: English
Current club: Colchester United, England
Transfermarkt value: £150,000
At 19 years old, Micah Mbick is the youngest player on the list and by far the least experienced, with just 30-odd first-team appearances. The young striker also appeared once for the England under-20s.
He’s also suffered a season-ending injury in January while on loan at Colchester United from Charlton Athletic. If he had completed the full season at Colchester, he would have likely been in the Addicts’ plans.
Hearts could see something similar to the Ellis Simms situation when he arrived on loan from Everton in 2022: a young player who clearly has the talent to go to the top level in England.
With the potential to push for a title and with European football on the horizon, Hearts could be a tempting move for some loan players.
At 6'4", he’s a physically imposing, extremely strong centre forward and, despite his age, doesn’t look out of place in men's football. He works hard for his team, with a near league-leading 5.1 defensive duels per game – albeit with an average win percentage.
Mbick has great hold-up play, likes to initiate contact with defenders prior to receiving the ball, using them to play off instead of letting the defender dictate play.
When in possession, he’s skilful with good close control, able to get away from a defender with quick feet and a turn of direction.
In the final third, Mbick is very effective, with a goal contribution every 160 minutes. First loans are always very hard for young players, and with that out of the way, perhaps even a permanent move to Hearts could be a good next step in his career.
This signing would be a risk but would have a massive upside – what we often see in Jamestown signings.
Gabriele Gori
Age: 27
Nationality: Italian
Current club: Asoli, Italy
Transfermarkt value: £870,000
From the youngest to the oldest player on the list, 27-year-old Gabriele Gori has had a modest career.
After coming through the Fiorentina youth system, playing at every age group for Italy and scoring many goals before making it to first-team level, he has since spent his time between Serie B and C in his native Italy.
This season, playing for third-tier outfit Ascoli, Gori has scored 12 times and set up another six goals, helping his team to a second-place finish. This week they play Union Brescia over two legs for a place in Serie B.
Gori has all the qualities you’d expect from an experienced, 6'2" Italian centre forward. He’s intelligent, skillful and classy. An old-school No.9, staying high and central most of the time, he is hardworking and aggressive.
He likes to link up with team-mates and to provide an outlet, while adding some creativity at the top end of the park. The former Fiorentina youth is also incredibly strong under pressure and has one of the highest numbers of touches in the box per 90 of any forward in Serie C.
Gori is a player doesn't just like to create, he also gets into the box to impact the game there. He loves to press defenders, giving them little time on the ball, and takes up intelligent positions to pick up loose balls high up the park. He’s a well-rounded No.9 with very little in the way of weak attributes and would be a great fit for the Scottish Premiership.
