HEARTS ‘DEVASTATED’ BY NEW SOUTTAR BLOW

HEARTS boss Robbie Neilson says everyone at the club is ‘devastated’ by John Souttar’s third Achilles tendon injury since joining the Jambos back in February 2016. The Tynecastle outfit confirmed yesterday that Souttar had snapped his Achilles again, completing an unwelcome hat-trick of horrific setbacks since moving to Gorgie. The young Scotland centre-half is scheduled to go under the knife again tomorrow and faces another six months in rehab, while the recurring nature of the problem obviously raises fresh concerns about his long-term durability. Neilson said Souttar, just 23, would get total support from the club as he looks to rebuild his career in time to play at least some part in a shortened Championship campaign. Speaking to Hearts TV, Neilson said: ‘First and foremost, we’re devastated for John. His tendon has gone again, so he’s going to go in for an operation on

Wednesday and then we can hopefully get him back playing as soon as we possibly can. ‘It’s been a real blow for both John and the club. Obviously having had it already and just coming back from it, it’s been a tough few days for him, but we’re here to help him. ‘He’s got a good family around him as well. We’ll get him the best care we can get him and hopefully he’ll come back as quickly as he can.’

The loss of Souttar (pictured) leaves Hearts short in central defence — and Neilson admits that he’s now in the market for someone to fill that gap. ‘We’re looking at that at the moment,’ he said. ‘John was going to be one of our key players when he got fit but that wasn’t to be at this moment, so we have to recruit in that area. ‘It’s something that we’re actively doing, trying to fill the gap that has been left.’