Joe Wright heads to Hearts hoping to rebuild his career

He will join the first-team squad at Riccarton once players return from a pre-season training camp in Spain. He is eager to take the chance to prove his fitness and demonstrate a full recovery after more than a year on the sidelines.

Wright, 27, hoped to begin pre-season with Hearts but will now join them for training having been working on his own in recent months. He had agreed a deal to sign for the club last summer before serious injury in his final game for former team Doncaster Rovers scuppered that move.

He suffered knee and ankle damage in Doncaster’s last game of the 2020/21 campaign and has worked tirelessly since then to recuperate and regain fitness. Hearts gave him an open offer to train at Riccarton and he now feels ready to take that opportunity.

The Edinburgh club are in the market for another centre-back after five summer signings. They will first assess Wright and monitor his fitness levels in amongst the first-team squad. They won’t consider any kind of move to bring him on board permanently unless absolutely certain he would enhance their defence.

The Hearts players and staff were due to fly home from southern Spain on Friday after a seven-day training camp which ended with Thursday’s comfortable 4-0 friendly win over Europa FC from Gibraltar.

Alan Forrest scored twice, with Gary Mackay-Steven and Euan Henderson also etching their names on the scoresheet.