The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Free agent Allan opens up on fears clubs will give him a wide berth
Scott Allan believes his heart condition is an “asterisk” beside his name as he searches for his next club.
However, the former Dundee United and Dundee playmaker remains determined to find a new challenge, declaring: “There’s life in me.”
Allan, 30, is a free agent after leaving Hibernian in the close season.
Although he is managing a welldocumented condition – hypertrophic cardiomyopathy – he made 23 appearances last term and even found the net against United in a 3-1 Premier Sports Cup win.
But in a column for the BBC Sport website, Allan rued: “I’m the free agent with an asterisk next to his name.
“I’m 30 years old, 17 games in the Scottish Premiership last season for Hibernian, but for the first time in 14 years, the season kicked off and I don’t have a club. “There’s life left in me. I need to be playing. “Since being diagnosed with the heart condition a few years ago, it’s thrown doubt in there for some of the clubs. I know the way chairmen think. One million per cent it would be an issue for some teams.
“I’ve worked so hard to get back. This is the first summer in 14 years, since I’ve been professional, where every day I’ve managed to disconnect a little bit.”
Allan made nine appearances for United after emerging through the Tannadice academy, before going on to turn out for the likes of Celtic, Portsmouth, West Brom and Rotherham.
He spent the first half of the 2017-18 campaign on loan at Dundee, scoring one goal in 23 outings.
Allan continued: “When teams look at it, you don’t have minutes under the belt, combined with the fact you have a heart problem – which is now all fine – they look and go, ‘maybe we’ll go for someone else’.
“That’s the reality of the game, it doesn’t wait for anybody. My next place needs to be right in all aspects. It might not be as glamorous as I want, but to get back playing – that’s what I need to do.”