The club are set to hold talks to ramp up their January plans after an injury crisis leaves them short of numbers for a crucial clash with Celtic
14:18, 18 Jan 2026Updated 20:46, 18 Jan 2026
Lawrence Shankland goes off injured against Falkirk(Image: SNS Group)
Derek McInnes is set to hold talks with Hearts sporting director Graeme Jones about accelerating transfer plans after their injury crisis ramped up a notch last night.
The title-chasing Jambos are sweating the fitness of captain Lawrence Shankland for this weekend’s crucial match with Celtic after he went off in extra-time during their Scottish Cup exit against Falkirk. Beni Baningime, who is suspended for their next two league games, also went off due to a hamstring injury, and Cammy Devlin isn’t expected back for six to eight weeks.
It takes their total injury list up to eight and McInnes admitted midfielder Sander Kartum may not have been loaned out to Wellington Pheonix had he known what was about to come.
And the boss admits he’s set to hold talks with chief Jones about strengthening the squad this month. When asked if there are plans to ramp up their January business, he told the Edinburgh Evening News: “Possibly, yes. I’ve spoken to the board. I’ll speak to Graeme Jones again today and see where we are. Sander Kartum’s deal was done last week ahead of these latest injuries. We are hoping Ageu is back for Celtic but I think it’s a big ask (to throw him in). We are hoping Oisin McEntee might be back but there’s no certainty with that. That middle area of the pitch is a wee bit of a concern at the minute.”
The club have already agreed a pre-contract deal for Ugandan winger Rogers Mato – and are hoping his current club FK Vardar will green-light a deal to let him join now. That would be one problem position solved but a new midfielder, and possibly another frontman should Shankland’s injury prove serious, could be high on the agenda.
On the injury situation facing the club, McInnes added: “Beni just felt his hamstring cramp up. We don’t know about him. Obviously, he misses the next two games anyway so he’s not an immediate concern for them.
“We’re a bit concerned about Lawrence. We will see how he is in the next day or so but it’s not ideal having to take him off. Especially when it goes to penalties. He’s one of the ones you would want to keep on. We will see how he is.
“Borchgrevink was added to the squad and he was down to be on the bench against Falkirk, then he felt his hamstring a bit on Friday. He came in on Saturday morning and was ruled out. We then hurriedly tried to get Adam Forrester back just to give us some defensive cover. Jordi Altena is still trying to get up to match speed.
Hearts manager Derek McInnes(Image: PA)
“In general, it’s just been a tough week. It’s been a good week in terms of the two wins, but the way those games played out just took its toll. We looked untidy as extra-time played out. It was all a bit desperate. We didn’t connect the game. It was all a bit frantic. I just thought we looked really leggy. We now need to see where we are for the Celtic game.
“We’ve got eight days until that one and we’ll see how everybody is and who is going to be available. It would be nice to know in the early part of the week exactly where we stand with that because midfield is a key area of the pitch. We are a bit short there at the minute and we could do with some bodies back.”