Danny Armstrong Kilmarnock transfer update as Derek McInnes drops lovebomb amid Hearts interest

Derek McInnes expects Danny Armstrong will still be a Kilmarnock player come the end of the transfer window - and insists he will remain a key man until May.

The winger is out of contract in the summer and Hearts - who Killie face tomorrow - are keen on a move. The Rugby Park club have also knocked back a six-figure bid from an unnamed European club for the 27-year-old. But McInnes has full faith Armstrong won’t lose focus on the park while attention off it increases ahead of the Premiership trip to Tynecastle. He said: “I’ve not seen anything of note with that. I think Danny is always the same.

“We’ve got so many players out of contract but the focus always seems to be on Danny for some reason, which is totally unfair. I love working with Danny and I have done since I’ve been here. I wanted that to continue.

“As far as I’m aware, he’s not signed with anyone else so while there’s still a chance, we work towards having that. I don’t see anything happening in January for him. He’s been a key player for us over the last couple of seasons and we hope he’s a key player for us in the run-in this season.

“At times, us as managers need to accept that when players are out of contract, and we’ve got a load of boys in that situation, they’ve got advisors and aspirations to maybe look at other things.

“I’m totally comfortable with that and we should all be. I could probably utilise my budget more by getting more loans in, but I wanted to get away from that as a club. I wanted us to have a bit more stability. When a team like Kilmarnock finishes fourth in the league, there’s always reasons why that is. Danny was a big part of that, so it’s just par for the course.

"I really enjoy working with him and nothing has changed. My job as