Steven Naismith speaks on Hearts transfers and the club's working policy

Policy is dictated by player availability but early business is preferred

Steven Naismith and the Hearts hierarchy have been fairly relentless during the first half of 2024 with six new players signed and one more to come. Gerald Taylor’s imminent transfer from Deportivo Saprissa should be confirmed after his Copa America duties with Costa Rica. It is another piece in a quickly but carefully-assembled jigsaw.

Hearts wanted transfers done earlier this year compared to last, when Naismith’s promotion from B team to first team staff was not confirmed until 7 June. He has been proactive ever since, determined to do business quickly and efficiently to prepare the squad for 2024/25.

Ryan Fulton, James Penrince, Daniel Oyegoke, Blair Spittal, Yan Dhanda and Musa Drammeh are the six new arrivals so far. Naismith is content with the speed at which his club have moved. It is a working policy he wants to continue where possible.

“By the time everything was sorted and we got underway last year, you are trying to catch up. You end up being reactive,” he explained to the Edinburgh News. “I felt it was important that we get away from being reactive every window. Things move fast in football so you need to be constantly looking to make sure you have everything covered.

“We worked really hard over the last year to identify where we need to improve, and identify players we think connect to Hearts who can make a difference. I think that's what we have done, so it's been a good summer so far.

“Doing business early depends on the player and circumstances. If a player is coming out of contract then you can get a pre-contract done early. If there is an area of the team where we think we need to move quickly, we will do that. There might be other situations where we have identified somebody who we think fits us but is not a priority, so that might take a bit longer.

“The clear thing that needs to be right is that we are ready to move. You have an idea of where you want to go and who you want to bring in. That's the thing. Yes, we have managed to get six signings in quickly, but four of them were pre-contracts so they were always going to happen quickly. It's nice to get our business done as early as possible, but circumstances dictate that.”