Liam Boyce shoots down Aberdeen transfer links and makes new Hearts contract admission

Liam Boyce has shot down any notion of leaving Hearts for Aberdeen and is focused on firing the Jambos into the Europa League group stages.

The Northern Irish hitman was linked with a switch to Pittodrie last week, while Ipswich Town were also credited with an interest. It left Robbie Neilson bemused, who insisted he had no intention of letting his top scooter of the last two seasons go, especially to a Premiership rival. Jim Goodwin admitted Boyce is a player he’s always admired, but wasn’t plotting a raid on Tynecastle to try and land him for the Dons. Boyce doubled down on Neilson’s stance, and had no idea where the links had come from.

With guaranteed European group stage football until Christmas, Gorgie is the place to be for Boyce and now is the last time he’d want to go elsewhere: “Exactly, last year we worked hard as a team and we were playing well, getting to cup finals and stuff and this is the reward for that,” he said.

"Now we’re thinking about winning games in Europe, it’s not just about getting there and celebrating, that’s it over and you go out at the first opportunity. We want to go in and show how good we are.

“I’m happy to be here and I’ve always said I’m happy to go wherever I’m wanted or stay wherever I’m wanted. I’m just happy to be at Hearts, a big club, we’re in Europe and that’s the way I take it.

“When you get older it sort of happens in every window, I think people just make it up, I don’t know where it came from. But I just concentrate on playing well and scoring goals and seeing what happens.”

The 31-year-old is entering the final year of his Hearts contract, however. He first arrived in January 2020 from Burton Albion and the brief was to fire Hearts to safety.

It started with a bang,